Science

Health Officer Recommends Virtual Classes for Middle and High Schools, No Contact Sports for Now

The Jefferson County health officer is recommending that boards of education in the county "strongly consider" setting up virtual learning for middle and high school students this coming school year and cancelling or postponing contact sports. "With the current level of viral spread and disease in the community, there is a considerable chance" that the virus will occur among students and school staff, Dr. Mark Wilson said in a letter to school officials. "If classes are not stringently isolated from one another, whole schools may end up having to close." Read more.

by Virginia MacDonald

COVID-19 Total Passes 80,000 in Alabama

There were 1,180 new COVID-19 cases in Alabama Tuesday, pushing the state's total to 80,309 since the pandemic began in March. The count was down from the 1,778 cases reported on Monday by the Alabama Department of Public Health. It also was below the averages of 1,605 per day over the past week and 1,705 daily over the last 14 days. The number of deaths during the pandemic remained at 1,446. Another 2,057 cases and 45 deaths were listed as probably from COIVD-19 but still under investigation. Read more.

by BirminghamWatch

State’s COVID-19 Count Rises by 1,778 Cases and 18 Deaths in Monday Tally

The number of COVID-19 cases in Alabama grew by 1,778 and there were 18 more deaths, the Alabama Department of Public Health reported in its daily update Monday. There have been 79,129 confirmed cases of the disease and 1,446 deaths from it since the pandemic began in March. A total of 655,973 individuals have been tested statewide, and 12% of those have shown positive. Of that number, 1.8% have died. Alabama is averaging 1,631 new cases and 27 deaths a day for the past week and 1,740 cases and 25 deaths daily during the last 14 days. Read more.

by BirminghamWatch

Daily COVID-19 Count Drops to 1,037 New Cases in Sunday Report

The number of new cases of COVID-19 in Alabama dropped to its lowest daily total in almost three weeks on Sunday when the state Department of Public Health reported 1,037 cases. The count was below 1,000 for the first time since 888 cases were reported on July 7, and was well below the statewide averages of 1,641 cases a day over the past week and 1,746 daily in the last 14 days. The Health Department's COVID-19 Dashboard also saw a decline in the number of deaths, with 15 listed. That is below the average of 25 a day over the past seven days and 24 daily over the last two weeks. Read more.

by BirminghamWatch

Jefferson County Tops 10,000 Cases and Reaches 200 Deaths in COVID-19 Report

Jefferson County surpassed the 10,000 mark in new cases and reached 200 deaths from COVID-19 in Saturday's coronavirus report by the Alabama Department of Public Health. The state's most populous county recorded 286 confirmed new cases of the disease to raise its total to 10,095 since the pandemic began in March. The county reported three deaths to reach to 200 mark. The Health Department's report for the latest 24-hour period showed 1,949 new cases statewide, pushing the total to 76,314. There were 18 deaths for a total of 1,413. It said an additional 1,640 cases and 43 deaths are believed to have been from COVID-19 but are still under study. Read more.

by BirminghamWatch

With End of $600 Unemployment Benefit, Groups Expect Surge in Evictions, Homelessness

As Congress debates another stimulus package, many Alabama residents will now see their weekly unemployment checks drop to less than $300. Read more.

by Mary Scott Hodgin, WBHM

ADEM: 3M to Pay to Clean Up PFAS Chemicals It Illegally Dumped in North Alabama

The 3M Company and Alabama regulators have entered into a consent agreement that will require the company to clean up pollution from “forever chemicals” from its plant in Decatur and other sites in the Tennessee Valley area. The chemicals are in a class of environmentally persistent pollutants known as per- and polyfluiorinated substances and commonly referred to as PFAS chemicals. 3M has produced PFAS chemicals for decades at Decatur. The compounds are used in non-stick and non-absorbent materials such as cookware, fabric protectants and firefighting foam. They do not break down in the environment. The Alabama Department of Environmental Management announced the consent order Friday. It requires the company to clean up the chemicals and commits it to assessing sites in north Alabama counties to determine the presence of PFAS and take steps to reduce their levels. ADEM Director Lance LeFleur stated that the order is the nation’s “most far-reaching and significant enforcement action to date” concerning PFAS. Congress has pressed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to develop national standards for the chemicals. LeFleur said the agreement “puts Alabama ahead of the game in regulating these harmful compounds,” and increases the department’s control over the substances. Read more.

by Hank Black

Alabama Reports 1,669 Cases of COVID-19 and 38 Deaths in Friday Update

Alabama's COVID-19 count climbed by 1,669 cases Friday, and the state Department of Public Health reported 38 deaths from the disease in its daily report. The number of confirmed cases of the disease was down from Thursday's record 2,283 cases. The agency's COVID Dashboard showed a total of 74,365 confirmed cases of the new coronavirus since the pandemic began in March, and 1,395 deaths. Another 1,516 cases and 40 deaths were listed as probably resulting from COVID-19 but still under study. Read more.

by BirminghamWatch

Birmingham-Area Schools’ Plans for Reopening

Schools across the state are deciding when and how to reopen schools in the fall. The state Department of Education set out several options for systems to consider, including in-person learning, virtual learning and blended plans, and said all parents have the option to enroll their children in a virtual learning program. Here is where Birmingham-area schools stand on planning for the start of school. Read more.

by Jackson Sharman

Work Release Suspension Has Hurt the Pockets of Inmates, Prisons and Victims

UPDATED — Responding to the coronavirus, the Alabama Department of Corrections suspended its work release program in mid-March, and figures for May show how that decision has led to a drastic drop in inmate earnings, the amount of restitution that work release inmates pay to their victims, and the amount of inmate earnings that goes to corrections itself. Payments to victims were cut by almost $100,000 in May, which includes some time before the program was suspended, compared to February. Money to corrections was cut more than $700,000, and $534,000 less was deposited to inmates’ accounts. Read more.

by Tom Gordon