BEAUMONT, Texas — Key updates for Friday, April 10, 2020:
- The number of U.S. cases is more than 465,000. New York state alone has more cases than Spain, the next country on the worldwide list.
- Pharmaceutical giant Sanofi says it is donating 100 million doses of the drug that has been touted by President Trump.
- British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's father says his son likely won't be back to work immediately.
- Singapore suspends online Zoom classes after hackers show obscene images.
- South Korea has reported 27 new cases Friday, the ninth straight day below 100.
- Look back at the Thursday, April 9 blog at this link
School Impacts | Business Impacts, Closures | Map of SE Texas cases | Coronavirus symptoms & prevention | Coronavirus questions answered
Latest local & Texas updates:
Here are the latest updates from around Southeast Texas, Texas, Louisiana and some from the world (all times are local Central Daylight Time):
April 10, 6 p.m. Four inmates in the LeBlanc Unit have tested positive for COVID-19, according to data on TDCJ's website.
April 10, 4:50 p.m. — Beaumont Mayor Becky Ames reports six more cases of COVID-19 in the city of Beaumont, which brings the total to 70 in the city.
April 10, 2:05 p.m. -- Texas Governor Greg Abbott announces that on Saturday night the capitol will be lit up in blue in honor of those on the front lines of the fight against the coronavirus.
April 10, 1 p.m. -- The worldwide death toll from the coronavirus has hit 100,000, according to the running tally kept by Johns Hopkins University. Scroll down for more.
April 10, 11:40 a.m. -- Lamar State College Port Arthur will receive $1,056,684 through the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund authorized by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act according to a news release from the college.
The funds will be used to provide grants to students expenses such as tuition, course materials and technology, housing and other education-related items that were incurred due to the coronavirus pandemic.
April 10, 9:30 a.m. -- The chief executive of the Tokyo Games says he can’t guarantee the postponed Olympics will be staged next year because the coronavirus continues to spread in Japan. Scroll down for more.
April 10, 9 a.m. -- Dr. Anthony Fauci says at the last White House coronavirus task force meeting, the people responsible for developing, validating and disseminating the tests were saying “a rather large number of tests” will be available within a week. Scroll down for more.
April 10, 6:25 a.m. -- Boris Johnson’s father says the British prime minister needs time to recover from the new coronavirus and is unlikely to be back at work imminently. Scroll down for more.
April 10, 6:20 a.m. -- Pharmaceutical giant Sanofi says it is donating 100 million doses of a malaria drug being tested for use as a treatment against the new coronavirus. Scroll down for more.
April 10, 6:20 a.m. -- Russian doctors will start treating all patients with pneumonia for the new coronavirus without waiting for test results to confirm the diagnosis, the country’s Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said. Scroll down for more.
April 10, 6:15 a.m. -- Singapore has suspended the use of Zoom for online education after hackers hijacked a lesson and showed obscene images to students. Scroll down for more.
April 10, 12 a.m. -- UFC 249 was canceled Thursday after ESPN and parent company Disney stopped UFC President Dana White’s plan to keep fighting amid the coronavirus pandemic.Scroll down for more.
April 10, 12 a.m. -- South Korea has reported 27 new cases of the coronavirus, marking its ninth consecutive day below 100, as infections continue to wane in the worst-hit city of Daegu. Scroll down for more.
April 9, 11 p.m. -- The confirmed number of coronavirus cases in the United States is 465,750 as of midnight ET Friday morning. There have been 16,684 deaths in the U.S. and 25,960 recoveries. Scroll down for more.
The confirmed number of coronavirus cases in the United States was more than 486,000 on Friday, after it was at 465,750 midnight EDT, according to the count by Johns Hopkins University. There have been over 18,000 deaths in the U.S. and 27,000 recoveries.
The state of New York alone has 161,807 confirmed cases. That more than Spain, the country with the second-most cases in the world behind the U.S.
Worldwide, there are 1.6 million confirmed cases with more than 101,000 deaths and 371,000 recoveries.
White House adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci told NBC's TODAY show Thursday that he now believes the U.S. death toll will be around 60,000, not the 100,000 - 240,000 predicted a few weeks ago. He cites social distancing and changes to people's behavior.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, and the vast majority survive. But for others, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause pneumonia or death.
Surgeon General discusses burden of COVID-19 on people of color
Surgeon General Jerome Adams says the United States is taking steps to protect people of color from COVID-19. At a White House task force meeting, he said he had met with African American leaders to discuss the impact of the virus on people of color.
He said Hispanics in New York City were the majority of deaths. In Milwaukee county, African Americans make up 75% of COVID-19 deaths and 50% of cases despite only being 25% of the population.
Adams said the statistics were "alarming, but not surprising." He listed both medical and social ills as reasons the virus hits communities of color particularly hard. According to Adams, only one in five African Americans and one in 6 Hispanics have a job that will allow them to work from home. As the CDC has said, teleworking and social distancing have been critical in mitigating the virus.
"We do not think people of color are more biologically or genetically predisposed to COVID-19," Adams emphasized. "There is nothing wrong with you."
Adams said the US was taking steps to "reach, protect and strengthen all communities," including "data collection, targeted outreach and increased financial, employment, education, housing, social and health supports" for communities of color.
Worldwide deaths surpass 100,000
The worldwide death toll from the coronavirus has hit 100,000, according to the running tally kept by Johns Hopkins University. The sad milestone comes as Christians around the globe mark a Good Friday unlike any other — in front of computer screens instead of in church pews. Meanwhile, some countries are tiptoeing toward reopening segments of their battered economies. Public health officials are warning people against violating the social distancing rules over Easter and allowing the virus to flare up again. Authorities are using roadblocks and other means to discourage travel.
Tokyo Olympic CEO hints games could be in doubt even in 2021
The chief executive of the Tokyo Games says he can’t guarantee the postponed Olympics will be staged next year because the coronavirus continues to spread in Japan. The country issued an emergency declaration this week to battle the virus. The Olympics were postponed last month with a new opening set for July 2021. Organizing committee CEO Toshiro Muto says “I don’t think anyone would be able to say if it is going to be possible to get it under control by next July or not. We certainly are not in a position to give you a clear answer."
Dr. Fauci says antibody tests expected next week in US
Dr. Anthony Fauci says at the last White House coronavirus task force meeting, the people responsible for developing, validating and disseminating the tests were saying “a rather large number of tests” will be available within a week.
Fauci told CNN on Friday he’s ”certain that that’s going to happen.”
An antibody test could show whether a person was recently exposed to the coronavirus. Fauci says the test would say “that you were infected and if you’re feeling well you very likely recovered.”
Fauci says medical experts could then try to determine how deeply the virus “has penetrated the society” and whether previously infected people would be vulnerable to reinfection, which is particularly “important for health care workers.”
Fauci says testing for an antibody doesn’t mean medical experts are shifting away from testing for the virus to see who’s infected. He says, “those things are done in parallel.”
Boris Johnson won't be back to work soon, father says
Boris Johnson’s father says the British prime minister needs time to recover from the new coronavirus and is unlikely to be back at work imminently.
The U.K. leader spent three nights in the intensive care unit at St. Thomas’ Hospital in London after his COVID-19 symptoms worsened. He was moved back to a regular ward on Thursday evening, and his office says he is in “the early phase of his recovery.”
His father Stanley Johnson said the prime minister needed to “rest up.”
Johnson was diagnosed with COVID-19 two weeks ago, the first world leader confirmed to have the illness. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab is standing in for Johnson while he is in hospital.
Malaria drug maker donating 100 million doses
Pharmaceutical giant Sanofi says it is donating 100 million doses of a malaria drug being tested for use as a treatment against the new coronavirus.
In a statement Friday, the company said the hydroxychloroquine doses will be given to 50 countries. The company said it also is ramping up production, aiming to quadruple is capacity to manufacture the drug.
Sanofi said it “will continue to donate the medicine to governments and hospital institutions if ongoing clinical studies demonstrate its efficacy and safety in COVID-19 patients.”
But the company also cautioned that hydroxychloroquine has “several serious known side effects” and tests are so far inconclusive over its safety and efficacy in treating COVID-19.
President Donald Trump has been among the drug’s proponents, tweeting that hydroxychloroquine plus an antibiotic could be “one of the biggest game changers in the history of medicine” and should “be put in use immediately.”
Russia to use coronavirus treatments on pneumonia patients
Russian doctors will start treating all patients with pneumonia for the new coronavirus without waiting for test results to confirm the diagnosis, the country’s Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said.
“We’re seeing that the disease progresses fast, and it has specific clinical presentation, (allowing) to diagnose (it) without confirming in the lab based on the clinical presentation,” Murashko said in a TV interview that aired on Thursday night.
Murashko’s statement echoes earlier comments from Moscow doctors involved in treating coronavirus patients, saying that the vast majority of pneumonia cases in Russia are most likely caused by the new virus and should be treated as such.
Singapore suspends online classes after hackers strike
Singapore has suspended the use of Zoom for online education after hackers hijacked a lesson and showed obscene images to students.
In what is known as “Zoombombing,” two hackers interrupted a geography lesson a day after Singapore closed schools on Wednesday in partial lockdown measures to help curb local transmissions of the coronavirus.
Lessons have moved online, with some teachers using video conferencing tools like Zoom.
Singapore’s Ministry of Education said it was investigating the “serious incidents” and may file police reports.
South Korea reports 27 new cases
South Korea has reported 27 new cases of the coronavirus, marking its ninth consecutive day below 100, as infections continue to wane in the worst-hit city of Daegu.
Figures released by South Korea's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday brought nationwide totals to 10,450 cases and 208 virus-related deaths.
While the country’s caseload has slowed from early March, when it was reporting around 500 new cases per day, KCDC director Jeong Eun-kyeong has raised the possibility of a broader “quiet spread,” pointing to recent transmissions at bars and other leisure facilities that could indicate eased attitudes toward social distancing.
UFC 249 canceled
UFC 249 was canceled Thursday after ESPN and parent company Disney stopped UFC President Dana White’s plan to keep fighting amid the coronavirus pandemic.
After defiantly vowing for weeks to maintain a regular schedule of fights while the rest of the sports world halted, White confirmed the decision to cease competition in a text to The Associated Press.
UFC 249 was scheduled for April 18 on ESPN Plus pay-per-view, and White planned to follow it with regular fight cards from Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino on tribal land in California’s Central Valley.