Friday Morning C-19 Update

NOTE - Below is a radio-friendly notepad used on the Need To Know Morning Show on AM1100 The Flag WZFG. Spelling, punctuation, etc are not edited.

HERE ARE THE KEY NUMBERS THIS MORNING.....

IN NORTH DAKOTA THE PERCENT POSITIVE TEST RATE --  BELOW THE 7 AND 14 DAY AVERAGES THURSDAY... 2.1 PERCENT (49 POSITIVE OUT OF 2,235 TESTS)....NO NEW DEATHS - STILL 31....BUT 3 MORE ARE HOSPITALIZED, BRINGING THAT TOTAL TO 32......STATEWIDE 23 DEATHS ARE FROM THE VIRUS, 3 ARE FROM ANOTHER PRIMARY CAUSE, AND 5 WHERE FINAL RESULTS ARE PENDING.......CASS COUNTY HAD 23 OF THE 49 NEW POSITIVE TESTS....TRAILL COUNTY HAD ITS FIRST POSITIVE CASE REPORTED THURSDAY

IN MINNESOTA, TODAYS REPORT SHOWS THE END IS STILL A WAYS OFF.....786 POSITIVES OUT OF 4,189......18.9 PERCENT POSITIVE IS SLIGHTLY ABOVE THE 7 DAY AVERAGE.... 23 DEATHS TODAY.......435 ARE HOSPITALIZED  - 182 IN ICU...VERY SIMILAR TO YESTERDAY AND ABOVE THE 14 DAY AVERAGE...IN CLAY COUNTY, ONE NEW DEATH A MALE IN HIS 80'S WHO LIVED IN A CONGREGATE CARE FACILITY....NOW 15 IN ALL…

IN SOUTH DAKOTA, 2 MORE HAVE DIED, 31 NOW IN ALL......THAT'S 10 IN THE LAST 3 DAYS..........70 ARE CURRENTLY HOSPITALIZED, THAT'S DOWN 2 FROM THE DAY BEFORE

ACROSS THE U-S....ABOUT 21-HUNDRED NEW DEATHS REPORTED, THE TOTAL NOW STANDING AT ALMOST 77-THOUSAND....VERY CLOSE TO THE 7 AND 14 DAY AVERAGES.......ABOUT 28-THOUSAND NEW CASES, UP FROM THE LAST COUPLE DAYS AND RIGHT AT THE 14 DAY AVERAGE.......ABOUT 16-THOUSAND ARE HOSPITALIZED....AND THERE ARE ALMOST EXACTLY A MILLION ACTIVE CASES, THE HIGHEST NUMBER YET 

IF YOU'RE WONDERING ABOUT NEW YORK.....409 NEW DEATHS THURSDAY - STILL A TOUGH PICTURE....ABOUT 26-THOUSAND HAVE DIED THERE IN ALL.

HERE ARE YOUR FRIDAY MORNING HEADLINES -

MN GOVERNOR TIM WALZ THURSDAY unveiled a new statewide five-point plan to ASSIST long-term care facilities WHICH HAVE BEEN HIT HARD BY THE VIRUS.... The new plan will ramp up the support and coordination around

• Expanded testing for residents and workers

• personal protective equipment to facilities when needed.

• Ensure adequate staffing levels 

Walz told reporters the next businesses he will allow to reopen are likely to be “small retailers across Main Streets.”.....Walz said it wasn’t fair that someone could, say, buy socks on a trip to Walmart while another small retailer that could better limit foot traffic in their shop and sanitize a store might not be open right now under state guidance

THIS COMES AS group of small business owners and churches are SUING THE STATE FOR Gov. Tim Walz's stay-at-home order…..The churches are asking that they be allowed to hold in-person services. The businesses include a chain of hair salons, a gift shop and a minigolf course in Blaine. They're arguing that Walz's orders violate the Constitution and that they deserve compensation….the plaintiffs say they feel like they've been unfairly asked to close while businesses like liquor stores remain open.

MN HEALTH COMMISSIONER JAN MALCOM SAYS MINNESOTA STILL HAS NOT SEEN THE WORST....AT THURSDAYS NEWS BRIEFING SHE SAID  “We are still building toward the peak” of overall COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations..... “We are on the steep part of the curve and we’re just going to expect to see more and more cases each day. As we test more, we will find more."

MINNESOTA HIGH SCHOOLS WILL GET GUIDANCE THIS MORNING AT A 10 AM PRESS CONFERENCE WHERE GOVERNOR WALZ IS EXPECTED TO TALK ABOUT THE POSSIBILITIES FOR GRADUATION CEREMONIES….WEST FARGO SCHOOLS WILL HOLD A FACEBOOK LIVE VIDEO AT 1:30 TODAY TO OUTLINE THEIR PLAN FOR GRADUATION...THE STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT HAS GIVEN HIGH SCHOOLS THE GREEN LIGHT TO USE SCHOOL BUILDINGS IF IT’S DONE IN A COMPLIANT WAY.

PRAIRIE PUBLIC RADIO REPORTS THAT A HARVARD STUDY SHOWS NORTH DAKOTA is one of only nine states that are near the testing minimums NEEDED to OPEN up by May 15....The other eight states are: Alaska, Hawaii, Montana, Oregon, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming......The analysis involved calculating how much testing would be needed for a state to test all infected people and any close contacts they may have exposed to the virus, NPR reported.

The U.S. Department of Justice has awarded North Dakota about $2.1 million through the federal CARES Act economic rescue package.....The money is to help provide resources for state and local law enforcement to combat the outbreak.....IT can be used for overtime; equipment; supplies such as gloves, masks and sanitizer; and medical needs of inmates.....Most of the money is going to the state attorney general’s office. Fargo is getting about $196,000

A major meat processing plant in Sioux Falls that temporarily shut down due to a COVID-19 outbreak RESUMED OPERATIONS THURSDAY...Smithfield Foods is beginning a "phased" approach to reopening after receiving confirmation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevent and the U.S. Department of Agriculture that the company is in compliance with both CDC and OSHA guidelines.....The plant closed on April 12 after a COVID-19 outbreak sickened hundreds of employees. In all, over 800 workers were diagnosed with the disease, and two died.

IN OTHER NEWS,  north Dakota’s largest coal-fired power plant is slated to close in 2022, its owner announced THURSDAY....Minnesota-based Great River Energy said the cooperative is open to finding a new owner for Coal Creek Station in McLean County and has had "numerous discussions" with potential buyers. So far, it's found no takers.....THE CEO SAYS THEY'RE BASICALLY LOOKING TO GIVE THE PLANT AWAY...The power plant, in operation for four decades, has run at a loss for several years amid market challenges. Like many other coal plants across the United States that have shuttered over the past decade, it faces competition from natural gas and renewable energy.

The FEDERAL Justice Department is dropping its criminal case against Michael Flynn, President Donald Trump’s first national security adviser, who had previously pleaded guilty to lying to FBI agents about his conversations with a Russian diplomat....The move comes amid a sustained attack by Flynn’s lawyers on prosecutors and the FBI, accusing them of egregious conduct AND MISCONDUCT...Flynn first pleaded guilty in late 2017 to lying to investigators and cooperated extensively before moving to withdraw his plea and fight the case in court. He had also entered a guilty plea a second time in 2018 at an aborted sentencing hearing.

Frontier Airlines will become the first U.S. carrier to check passenger temperatures before allowing people to get on board. The program will start on June 1…...Before boarding, passengers and crew members will have their temperatures checked at the gate. If someone registers a temperature of 100.4 or higher, they will be kept at the gate for about ten minutes, then screened again…...If the second temperature check is still 100.4 or higher, the passenger or crew member will not be allowed on that flight.

•  ANOTHER POSITIVE DAY ON WALL STREET....THE DOW WAS UP 211 POINTS... THE SP500 UP 32 AND THE NAZ GAINED 125

• ANOTHER 3.17 MILLION AMERICANS FILED FOR UNEMPLOYMENT LAST WEEK....IT BRINGS THE TOTAL SINCE THE PANDEMIC STARTED TO 33.5 MILLION, BUT TODAY'S NUMBER WAS THE LOWEST IN THE LAST 7 WEEKS

• AND MULTIPLE MEDIA OUTLETS ARE REPORTING THAT THE NFL PLANS ON STARTING ITS REGULAR SEASON ON TIME THE WEEK OF SEP 6...VIKINGS OPEN AT HOME TO GB ON THE 13TH