Florida reports more than 5,240 new coronavirus cases on Friday
Danielle Prieur, WMFE
The Florida Department of Health reported 5,245 new coronavirus cases and 53 new coronavirus-related deaths on Friday.
That brings the total number of resident cases to 821,526 and the death toll in residents to 17,014 people since the start of the pandemic.
Orange County continued to lead Central Florida with the most coronavirus cases, adding 307 new cases for a total of 48,322 residents who have gotten sick since mid-March.
Statewide the positivity rate is at 6.36 percent.
Here are some coronavirus-related stories you might have missed:
Congressman Soto, Osceola Commission Says County Could Be Getting Its First Transitional Housing
Danielle Prieur, WMFE
Osceola County has voted to use the 69.5 million dollars it got from the CARES Act on public safety which will free up money in the budget for affordable housing. Read more here.
SeaWorld Reports Loss In Revenue And Attendance For Third Quarter
Talia Blake, WMFE
SeaWorld had a nearly 81 percent drop in attendance and a net loss of more than 79 million dollars this year compared to 2019. The theme park said that’s due to pandemic restrictions like fewer operating days and hours, capacity limitations, and limits to the amount of money spent on marketing. Read more here.
Unemployment Drops, But Pandemic Surge Clouds Hopes For Recovery
Scott Horsley, NPR
U.S. employers added 638,000 jobs last month, as the economy continued its slow recovery from the coronavirus recession. Job growth slowed for the fourth month in a row. Read more here.
CDC Report: Officials Knew Coronavirus Test Was Flawed But Released It Anyway
Dina Temple-Raston, NPR
On Feb. 6, a scientist in a small infectious disease lab on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention campus in Atlanta was putting a coronavirus test kit through its final paces. NPR has learned the results of that final quality control test suggested something troubling — it said the kit could fail frequently. Read more here.
