Purple Tier COVID Roundup: Outbreak At Danville School; Anti-Vax Protesters Angered By New Health Order; Newsom Announces Regional Stay-At-Home Order
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- With a surge in coronavirus cases, the information you need to know is coming fast and furious. Here's a roundup of the COVID stories we've published over the last 24 hours.
Berkeley Mayor Hopes City Can Dodge COVID Surge, Avoid New Stay-at-Home Orders
BERKELEY -- In Berkeley, the city has been able to keep COVID-19 numbers low with only nine deaths reported so far. The mayor says it's a community effort and it will need that same commitment to get through what is expected to be another tough month. In Berkeley and elsewhere in the Bay Area, people are still enjoying outdoor dining as this region so far is exempt from Governor Newsom's new stay-at-home orders. But, if cases surge as they are expected to, this will be one of many things banned. "If we do not take this seriously in the next few day, weeks and months, more people are going to die and it's going to be even harder for our economy to recover," Mayor Jesse Arreguin said.
Mayor Arreguin adds the pandemic has already dealt a huge blow to restaurants, in turn cutting deep into the city's tax revenue. This as Berkeley's positivity rate sits below two percent and averages just about 11 cases a day. Read More
Teachers, Students Test Positive for COVID-19 Days After In-Person Classes Resume in Danville
DANVILLE -- Special needs students were allowed to go back to class at one East Bay high school then, less than a week later, eight teachers and students tested positive for COVID-19. It happened at Del Amigo High in Danville, a small school specifically for teens with special needs. Some classes resumed at Del Amigo on November 17. "I'm very resentful to the school district for keeping me from my family because I felt they put me in an unsafe situation from the get-go," said Jan Jimenez, who is an autism specialist at the high school. She has been quarantined at home for almost two weeks while battling COVID-19 after she says she was exposed to the virus on her first day back to in-person classes. "Half of our students, if not more, in our classroom were unable to wear a mask. We could not stay socially-distanced," Jimenez said. Read More
SAN JOSE -- About 30 people gathered outside San Jose's administration building Thursday to protest the latest restrictions being announced regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. While they brought a collection of various coronavirus grievances with them, the event was organized by an anti-vaccination group which has become increasingly vocal regarding COVID affairs. So why would the anti-vaccination movement hinder efforts to achieve widespread COVID vaccination? "Sarah Cody is not a fan of mine, and I've been following her tyrannical measures," said Lindy Jordan as she held an American flag. The San Jose rally -- and several others around the state -- were not just in opposition to pandemic lockdown policies. The gatherings were organized by a group called Freedom Angels, the same group of anti-vaccine activists that made headlines with raucous protests at the state capitol in 2019. In 2020, the anti-vax movement has become one element of the larger COVID protest movement. Read More
Sunnyvale Officers Arrest 5 In Connection to $1M Fraud Case Involving At Least 100 Victims
SUNNYVALE -- Five suspects were arrested in connection with bilking approximately $1 million from the California Employment Development Department (EDD), the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety announced Thursday. The department said it identified at least 100 potential victims of EDD fraud and there could be thousands more after officers discovered a treasure trove of evidence in the hotel room of a burglary suspect. On Nov. 16, officers from the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety Burglary Suppression Detail (BSD) visited the hotel room of 35-year-old San Jose resident George Ramirez. They were following up on a burglary where Social Security cards, credit cards, utility bills, and personal checks were stolen. Read More
Newsom Announces Regional Stay-At-Home Order For Areas With Low ICU Capacity
SACRAMENGTO -- On the heels of a record day of new COVID cases, Gov. Gavin Newsom Thursday announced a new regional stay-at-home order tied to the ICU rates in a given region that will require many businesses to shut down. Previously, the state has set restrictions based on county COVID case rates and hospitalizations. Alameda, San Francisco, Santa Clara, Contra Costa, San Mateo, Napa, Sonoma and Solano counties are all currently in the Purple Tier while Marin remained in the Red Tier as of Wednesday. The new restrictions will be based on ICU capacity and tied to hospital regions. If a region falls below 15 percent available ICU capacity, it will get tougher restrictions with a three-week stay-at-home order. According to Newsom, after the minimum three weeks, the order could be lifted if a region's projected ICU capacity meets or exceeds 15 percent. The region's projected ICU capacity would be reassessed weekly if it has not met that threshold after the third week. Read More
Jewish Doctor From Bay Area Talks About Treating COVID Patient With Nazi Tattoos
SACRAMENTO -- Health care workers have had their strength, stamina and spirits put to the test during the pandemic. But one Bay Area physician currently working an ER near Sacramento told KPIX 5 about a critically-ill patient who recently left him questioning his own compassion. Dr. Taylor Nichols says he has cared for patients with offensive tattoos in the past. "Some of my favorite conversations with patients have been just about that -- talking to them about their tattoos," said Dr. Nichols. But a patient the doctor encountered two weeks ago tested his commitment to the Hippocratic Oath. On a Twitter thread posted November 30th, Dr. Nichols described the encounter. The older man arrived at the emergency room by ambulance and was struggling to breathe. He looked at Nichols and said, "Don't let me die, Doc." As his shirt came off and he was put on a ventilator, the patient's lightning bolt "SS" and swastika tattoos were on prominent display.
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Health Officials Confirm Over 300 Cases At San Jose Care Facilities, Homeless Shelters Outbreaks
SAN JOSE -- Santa Clara County health officials on Thursday confirmed multiple COVID-19 outbreaks at at least two long-term care facilities and two homeless shelters in San Jose that have infected over 300 people. The county has already been seeing an alarming spike in cases during the latest coronavirus surge, officials said. The outbreaks in congregate settings are happening "despite safeguards and regular surveillance testing." "These outbreaks are an unfortunate reminder that increases in community transmission of COVID-19 threaten our most vulnerable communities," said SCC Deputy Health Officer Dr. George Han. "Along with rising cases and increasing hospitalizations, this should serve as an alarm bell for each of us to take every possible step to reduce the spread of COVID-19." The spread of COVID-19 has hit two long-term care facilities, officials said. While the county noted there were multiple outbreaks at such facilities being investigated, the two most significant outbreaks had happened at facilities in San Jose. Read More
Pushed Out of Bay Area by Virus, 49ers Confront Challenges of Extended Trip
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- When the San Francisco 49ers arrived at their temporary home in Arizona, coach Kyle Shanahan gathered several players and told them to make sure everyone is looking out for each other. As important as practice, game plans and preparations are for the playoff-hopeful 49ers, Shanahan is also concerned about the mental wellbeing of his players, who have left their families for at least three weeks after strict new COVID-19 protocols in their home county prohibited games and practices for contact sports until at least Dec. 21. "I just try to tell everyone, no matter what, when someone has a problem, whatever it is, there's no problem too big or too small," Shanahan said. "A lot of guys keep that stuff internally, but I met with a bunch of the players and I grabbed about 20 of them last night and just told them to look out for that stuff." Read More
Mayor Breed Regrets Attending French Laundry Dinner
SAN FRANCISCO -- San Francisco Mayor London Breed accepted criticism and expressed regret Thursday over attending a birthday party at the French Laundry last month as COVID-19 cases surged. Breed expressed her remorse on Twitter while sharing an editorial from the San Francisco Chronicle that criticized Breed, Gov. Gavin Newsom and other politicians who attended public gatherings while ignoring the rules and recommendations they supported. "This criticism is fair. It doesn't matter whether something is technically allowed or not--I need to hold myself to a higher standard and I will do better," Breed tweeted. "What I especially regret is that the urgency of our public health message in this moment has never been more dire and my actions have distracted from that. "We're in a much different place than even just a few weeks ago and we need everyone to do their part, starting with me," Breed added. Read More
Oakland Suspends Indoor Recreation Program Due To Spiking COVID-19 Cases
OAKLAND -- The Town Camp Enrichment Program in Oakland is being suspended because of the COVID-19 pandemic, city officials announced Thursday. The program provides indoor recreation to school-age youth from kindergarten through fifth grade. Outdoor youth programs, senior programs, library services and homeless services will still be provided, according to city officials. According to Alameda County, 10,884 cases of the coronavirus have been reported in Oakland as of Thursday. City officials said the recent spike in virus cases and possibly a further increase because of family holiday gatherings were behind the decision to suspend the enrichment program. "We realize that this will be a burden on some families," city officials said. "However, we feel it is gravely necessary for us to play our part to control the spread of COVID-19, for both the customers we serve AND our own staff and their families." Read More
U.S. Supreme Court Allows California's COVID Restrictions On Churches To Stand For Now
SAN FRANCISCO -- With new COVID cases soaring and indoor religious services banned across the San Francisco Bay Area, the U.S. Supreme Court Thursday ordered a lower federal court to reexamine the state's COVID restrictions on religious services in areas hard hit by the coronavirus. Currently, indoor religious services are prohibited in counties in the state's Purple Tier of the COVID monitoring system. The only Bay Area county not in purple is Marin County. San Francisco Catholic Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone has been an outspoken critic of the restrictions. "After weeks of demonstrating we can celebrate the Mass safely, the state of California has put San Francisco and San Mateo Counties into the purple tier, which bans indoor worship altogether," Archbishop Cordileone wrote to parishioners. "The order lumps religious worship with non-essential indoor activities such as gyms, movie theaters, and museums. At the same time, the health order allows for indoor retail at 25 percent capacity and permits massage parlors, hair and nail salons, and tattoo parlors to operate indoors." Read More
Napa Police Ranks Thinned By Positive COVID Tests
NAPA (CBS SF) -- With new COVID cases are rising in the county, Napa Police Chief Robert Plummer says his department was examining the ways his officers interact with local residents after several tested positive for the virus. In an interview the Napa Valley Register, Plummer said over the last four weeks "we had a bit of a bad run." Plummer said three officers had already returned to work after undergoing a seven-to-10 day quarantine. Other shifts have been filled with officers working overtime. "Thankfully, all the cases are mild. Thank God for that," Plummer told the newspaper. Contact tracing had also been done with the infected officers and local residents who had close physical contact with them notified. Read More
Surge Puts Christmas Travel And Gathering Plans In Jeopardy
ALAMEDA -- The CDC urged people to not travel on Thanksgiving and now that warning has been extended into December as many contemplate what to do for Christmas. Some say they have ruled out holiday travel when at all possible but many feel it's been hard to keep up with the guidelines that seem to change daily. Doug Mackenzie grew up on Alameda's Christmas Tree Lane and now he's carrying on the family tradition with his wife Tia. "Some people are not decorating as much but we want to decorate more we want to bring some happiness," Tia said. The Mackenzie family has been closely following the local and federal guidelines and haven't left Alameda County since the pandemic began. "We miss going on vacation, we miss seeing family but what are we supposed to do? Ya, what do we do?" Tia said.n Read More
