Coronavirus Update: Warriors Season On Hold; Sharks Play In Empty Arena; San Jose TSA Screeners Quarantined; Hanks Infected With Virus
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- The tsunami of news about the current coronavirus outbreak can be overwhelming. To help you navigate through what you need to know -- KPIX.com/KPIX 5 News/CBSN Bay Area -- will be publishing a news roundup each morning so you can start your day with the latest developments impacting you, your family and your daily life.
Stanford Medical Expert Examines Social Distancing, Bell Curve Of Coronavirus Epidemic
STANFORD -- Past the point of containment, the best hope is to slow a virus down, or "flatten the curve." The idea is to keep the virus from spreading so quickly that it overwhelms our health care system's ability to treat the very sick. That is what social distancing is designed to do, but where on that curve is the United States now, and where might the country be heading? "Of course, hindsight is 2020," says Dr. Bonnie Maldonado, a pediatrician and infectious disease expert at the Stanford School of Medicine. "We never know where we are on the curve, until after the curve has been drawn." Read More
CA Health Officials: Gatherings Of 250+Should Be Postponed, Canceled Due To Coronavirus
SACRAMENTO — California governor Gavin Newsom's office issued an updated policy on public gatherings Wednesday, saying non-essential gatherings of 250 people or more should be postponed or canceled until the end of March to slow the spread of coronavirus. Read More
NBA To Suspend Season After Wednesday Night Games Due To Coronavirus
NEW YORK — The National Basketball Association Wednesday night announced that the league would suspend the 2019-2020 season in the wake of the currently spreading coronavirus pandemic. The announcement came after the Golden State Warriors became the first major sports team in America to exclude fans from the team's arena during home games after San Francisco officials announced they were banning gatherings of more than 1,000 people for the next two weeks. Read More
San Jose Sharks Announce Games To Be Played In Empty SAP Center Over Coronavirus Concern
SAN JOSE -- The San Jose Sharks announced Wednesday that due to the concern over the coronavirus spread, games at the SAP Center would be played without fans in attendance. The announcement by the team's ownership group, Sharks Sports & Entertainment, follows a decision by Santa Clara County health officials prohibiting gatherings of more than 1,000 people in the county. Read More
2 More Cases Of COVID-19 Confirmed In Marin County; 3 Total
SAN RAFAEL -- Two more cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in Marin County, bringing the total to three, county officials said Wednesday. Both individuals were living with the person who was Marin County's first confirmed case. That person was on the Grand Princess - Mexican Rivera cruise ship where several passengers tested positive for the virus. The two people who are the second and third cases had been isolated in their home. They have mild symptoms and do not need to go to a hospital, county officials said. Read More
Tom Hanks Says He And Wife Rita Wilson Tested Positive For Coronavirus In Australia
OAKLAND (CBS SF) — Bay Area native Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson have tested positive for coronavirus after spending time in Australia, Hanks announced on Twitter Wednesday evening. Hanks said that during their time, he and Wilson felt "a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches." Read More
More TSA Screeners At Mineta San Jose Airport Under Coronavirus Quarantine
SAN JOSE -- South Bay elected leaders on Wednesday called on the Transportation Security Administration to release more information about three TSA officers who work at Mineta San Jose International Airport and recently tested positive for the novel coronavirus. The TSA in a written statement Tuesday night said that the "officers are receiving medical care and all TSA employees they have come into contact with over the past 14 days are quarantined at home." Read More
Oakland Cancels All Events Of 1,000+ At City-Owned Venues Through End Of March
OAKLAND — The city of Oakland has cancelled all events with 1,000 or more people in city-owned venues until the end of March, city officials said Wednesday. It's the latest move by Bay Area city officials to contain the spread of the coronavirus among large, metropolitan populations. Read More
Santa Clara County Confirms 3 New Coronavirus Cases, Bringing Total To 48
SANTA CLARA COUNTY — Three new cases of coronavirus have been identified in Santa Clara County on Wednesday, the county Public Health Department announced Wednesday night. The three new cases brings the total in the county to 48, the most in the Bay Area so far. Read More
San Mateo Co. Officials Urge Compassion As Grand Princess Passengers Move To San Carlos
SAN CARLOS — San Mateo County officials are urging compassion toward the passengers from the coronavirus-stricken Grand Princess cruise ship who are being transported to a private hotel in San Carlos for quarantine. Read More
SFUSD To Close Lakeshore Elementary Immediately As 4 Students Report Respiratory Illness
SAN FRANCISCO -- San Francisco Unified School District schools will stay open for the time being as the city seeks ways to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, city leaders announced Wednesday. Despite a Public Health Order issued by city leaders earlier in the day prohibiting all non-essential gatherings of 1,000 people or more for the next two weeks, the school district said the schools would stay open since school is classified as an essential gathering. Read More
White House Recommends Daily Silicon Valley Workplace Health Checks During Coronavirus Outbreak
SAN JOSE -- A White House COVID-19 task force, seeking ways to halt the spread of the coronavirus in Santa Clara County, has recommended that local officials enforce a 30-day mitigation strategy that would include daily health checks for staff and visitors upon their arrival to a workplace or office each day. Vice President Mike Pence announced the set of recommendations Wednesday afternoon for West Coast hot spots in the current outbreak — Santa Clara County and King, Pierce and Snohomish counties in Washington. Read More
NCAA To Hold March Madness Tournament Without Fans Over Coronavirus Fears; Only Family Allowed
The NCAA men's and women's basketball tournaments will be held without fans in attendance, with only essential staff, players and coaches and family member allowed to attend the March Madness games over concerns about the coronavirus spread. NCAA President Mark Emmert in a statement, "While I understand how disappointing this is for all fans of our sports, my decision is based on the current understanding of how COVID-19 is progressing in the United States." Read More
WHO Declares Coronavirus Outbreak Is Now A Pandemic
The World Health Organization declared Wednesday that the coronavirus outbreak spreading around the globe can now be characterized as a pandemic. WHO Director Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the WHO is "deeply concerned by the alarming levels of spread and severity" of the outbreak. Read More
Grand Princess Passengers Settle Into New Normal; Coronavirus Quarantine Under Guard At Military Bases
OAKLAND -- While the remaining passengers awaited to finally depart the Grand Princess moored at an Oakland shipyard Wednesday, others were nestling in at military bases in Northern California, Texas and Georgia, beginning a federally enforced 14-day coronavirus quarantine under heavy security. Princess Cruise officials confirmed by late Tuesday evening that a total of 1,406 people out of more than 2,000 passengers aboard the luxury liner when it docked on Monday had disembarked. Steve Berry and his wife, Joni, were among the passengers who left the ship on Tuesday. Read More
AWS Summit San Francisco Latest To Cancel Over Coronavirus Fears
SAN FRANCISCO -- In a growing list of large Bay Area events being canceled due to the coronavirus outbreak, Amazon Web Services announced that its upcoming summit in San Francisco has been canceled. "After careful review of the current situation with COVID-19 in San Francisco and listening to the guidance provided by the local authorities, Amazon Web Services has made the decision to cancel the AWS Summit San Francisco 2020, which was scheduled for April 14 at the Moscone Center," the tech giant said in a statement. Read More
Nurses Hold Day Of Action To Protest CDC's Coronavirus Containment Measures
SAN FRANCISCO -- The California Nurses Association and its parent group National Nurses United are holding a national day of action Wednesday, including Bay Area rallies to protest the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's suggested containment measures for the coronavirus. The California Nurses Association accused the CDC of weakening containment protocols like rolling back protective equipment standards from N95 masks to regular surgical masks, not requiring virus patients to be quarantined and loosening protections for nurses taking respiratory samples from patients. Read More
CORONAVIRUS IMPACTING YOUR DAILY LIFE
Pres. Trump Announces Travel Ban From Most Of Europe In Response To Coronavirus
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced aggressive measures to slow the spread of the coronavirus, including a ban on all travel from Europe with the exception of the U.K. Trump made the announcement in an address to the nation, calling the move the "most aggressive and comprehensive effort to combat a virus" in modern history. Read More
Coronavirus Is Changing How We Interact Socially
PLEASANTON -- The coronavirus outbreak has changed the way we live and how we interact with others. It's even changing how we say "hello." There is a new norm
al when it comes to greeting people: not touching. Many are changing the way they interact, forgoing hugs and handshakes and opting for elbow bumps and even foot shakes. Scientists from the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine in Singapore have come up with some "handshake alternatives" to avoid spreading COVID-19. Read More
BART To Install Hand Sanitizer Dispensers At Each Station Amid Coronavirus Outbreak
SAN FRANCISCO -- In order to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus throughout the Bay Area, BART said starting Wednesday night, each station will be equipped with at least one dispenser of hand sanitizer. BART said the move comes as ridership this week has gone down by 30 percent from an average Tuesday last month of 415,760 riders to 292,011 this past Tuesday. With less crowded trains, BART is also encouraging riders to maintain a distance from one another, per public health guidelines, to prevent the spread of the virus, also known as COVID-19. An arm's-length of space is recommended. Read More
Bay Area Students Adapt As Education System Grapples With Coronavirus Outbreak
PALO ALTO -- Students across the Bay Area are adapting to online classes, canceled events and "deep cleanings" as the education system grapples with the coronavirus outbreak. On Wednesday, Mission College in Santa Clara began suspending in-person classes, the latest campus to join an ever-growing list of higher education institutions to take the dramatic measure of moving lessons to an online format. This includes, but is not limited to: Academy of Art, San Francisco State University, City College of San Francisco, Santa Clara University, Stanford University, San Jose City Community College, UC Santa Cruz, UC Berkeley, Golden Gate University, Cal State University East Bay, San Jose State University, and Evergreen Valley College. Read More
Visitors Banned From San Mateo County Elder Care Facilities Over Coronavirus Fears
REDWOOD CITY -- Fears that the coronavirus can quickly spread among elderly people has prompted San Mateo County health authorities to ban visitors from nursing home facilities in the county. San Mateo County Health Officer Dr. Scott Morrow issued an order barring any visitors, including family members, and non-essential personnel from licensed skilled nursing facilities in the county through May 9. Read More
Bay Area Blood Banks: Donations Still Needed Amid Coronavirus Crisis
SAN FRANCISCO -- Blood centers nationwide are urging healthy people to continue to donate blood despite concerns about the novel coronavirus. Vitalant, the nation's second-largest community blood service provider, said in a statement that it supports initiatives by public health officials to limit the spread of the virus, which is also known as COVID-19. But it said blood centers have always required people to be in good health to donate blood, and the blood collection process follows policies established by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to ensure the health and safety of donors and patients. Read More
