COVID-19 by the numbers
New Mexico health officials announced 330 new positive tests for COVID-19 yesterday—only one fewer than the highest caseload day so far on June 5. Yesterday's new cases brought the statewide total thus far to 15,841, of which 6,496 have been designated as recovered by the health department.
Bernalillo County carried a significant load of the new cases: 162 of them. Doña Ana County had the second highest number of new cases with 35. And Santa Fe County had the third highest: 29 cases, the highest number reported here thus far in the pandemic. Santa Fe County has now had 380 cases, of which 156 have been designated as recovered by the health department.
The state also reported six new deaths; there have been 557 fatalities.
You can read all of SFR's COVID-19 coverage here. If you've had experiences with testing or the virus, we would like to hear from you.
Santa Fe schools will probably start virtually
Santa Fe Public Schools will likely begin the fall semester virtually, following an agreement the district made yesterday with teachers union NEA-Santa Fe to start online Aug. 20 and remain remote for the first nine weeks. The school board will consider the proposal at its meeting this evening, and the state education department also will need to sign off. Both the Los Alamos and West Las Vegas school districts also have announced they will begin the semester virtually. SFPS Superintendent Veronica García says if COVID-19 conditions improve, the district will slowly phase students into in-person instruction. "We will open the spigot a little bit at a time as we bring kids back so we don't have any problems in terms of safety with the kids and faculty and staff," she said. "With this virus, I want to protect our kids 100 percent."
What to expect when you’re expecting a $100 million shortfall
As of now, the city of Santa Fe plans to start hearings on how to address its $100 million shortfall on July 20, with a vote by the governing body on said budget scheduled for July 29. SFR spoke with Finance Committee Chairman and City Councilor Roman "Tiger" Abeyta this week about what to expect as the city makes some tough choices. On the glass half-full tip, Abeyta thinks the shortfall may end up closer to $70 or $80 million. On the other hand, many open questions remain, according to Abeyta: "Is the mayor going to use some of our cash reserves to plug that deficit? Is there going to be any reduction in the workforce? Will we continue the hiring freeze? How is that going to impact services and departments? These are all strategies we will weigh in on. Each department has also been looking at their own internal budgets and where they can make cuts without impacting services as much as possible."
Working during COVID-19
State officials yesterday announced several aspects of an increased emphasis on workplace safety during the COVID-19 pandemic. These include a statewide initiative that launched yesterday to certify businesses in COVID-19 safety practices through online trainings for nearly a dozen sector-specific modules. Tourism Secretary Jen Paul Schroer discussed the training program during a joint news conference with Environment Secretary James Kenney and Workforce Solutions Secretary Bill McCamley. State efforts also include the forthcoming addition of 20 more health and safety officers for the environment department's Occupational Health and Safety Bureau. McCamley noted that workers who can prove their employers are not practicing COVID-safe protocols will be eligible for unemployment even if they resign. Workforce Solutions will be hosting a series of virtual town hall discussions aimed at assisting businesses as they seek to reopen; there is one scheduled for today at 2:30 pm on the construction trades.
Listen up
How do you decide whether you trust a New Mexico news source? That's one of the questions KUNM's Let's Talk New Mexico program will tackle this morning at 8 am. Guests will include Daily Lobo News Editor Lissa Knudsen, KUNM News Editor Hannah Colton, KUNM reporter Marisa Demarco and Trusting News Director Joy Mayer. The discussion centers on decision-making in the news and reckoning with a history of racism in media. You can call 505-277-5866 to participate live during the show. Listen online or at 89.9 FM if you have a radio.
Teens’ e-cigarette use rises
The health department reported yesterday high school students' tobacco use has increased by 23% since 2009, entirely as a result of electronic vapor products, or e-cigarettes. The information comes via the the 2019 New Mexico Youth Risk and Resiliency Survey jointly produced by the state health and education departments. That survey says 37.8% of all high school students were current users of at least one form of tobacco. The survey examined five forms of tobacco and found only e-cigarettes had increased in use. Cigarette smoking among high school students fell from 24.0% in 2009 to 8.9% in 2019, while e-cigarette use has increased 24.0% to 34.7% from 2015 to 2019.
Tularosa Basin Downwinders commemorate Trinity test
The Tularosa Basin Downwinders Consortium will host a virtual event recognizing the 75th Anniversary of the Trinity Test today at 9 am here. The event also is designed to draw attention to the lack of benefits received by the Tularosa Basin downwinders under the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act. New Mexico's congressional delegation, along with Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, support amending the act to include New Mexicans; videos from elected officials will be featured in the event, along with readings of first-hand accounts of the bomb blast, and commemorations of New Mexicans who died from cancer and other radiation-exposure related diseases. A complete list of events related to the 75th anniversary can be found here. The New York Times revisits the Trinity explosion in this article from yesterday. Concerned Citizens for Nuclear Safety also hosts a series of articles and events for the 75th anniversary of Trinity, Hiroshima and Nagasaki here.
Who owns an umbrella?
Today brings a 50% chance of rain, which we have decided means it will definitely rain. Meteorologists, however, predict scattered showers and thunderstorms after noon, and otherwise partly sunny, with a high near 86 degrees. Southeast wind 5 to 15 mph will become southwest in the afternoon. Equal chance for more rain this evening, with scattered showers and thunderstorms called for before midnight.
Thanks for reading! The Word just watched this e-bike commercial that was censored in France for purportedly "creating a climate of anxiety" about climate change. You can read about it in Grist.
