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Bay Area Headlines: Wednesday, 3/25/20, PM

 

Latest coronoavirus tally / Mortgage relief / School closure extension / Immigration detention

Latest coronoavirus tally

 

We’ll start with the latest official coronavirus numbers. As of 2:30 pm, today, there are2,974 confirmed cases in California, according to the San Francisco Chronicle’s tracking tool. The Bay Area makes up over a third of that number. There are one thousand one hundred and sixty two confirmed cases in the nine counties here, and 27 deaths. 

 

Mortgage relief

Just after noon today Governor Gavin Newsom announced a mortgage grace period. He said that banks like Wells Fargo, Citi, JPMorgan, and US Bank have agreed to a 90 day grace period for mortgage payments for those impacted by COVID 19. In his announcement, he also said that 1 million Californians have applied for unemployment benefits. He said in the coming weeks, all levels of government need to focus more on individuals and small businesses

School closure extension

And of today, six of the Bay Area’s nine counties announced they’re  extending school closures through May first - that’s Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara. Most districts are continuing to provide free meals to students, with schools acting as meal pick-up sites.  And the districts will continue to explore a variety of distance learning options.

Immigration detention

And pressure is mounting on the Trump administration to release people from immigration detention facilities. One person detained at a facility has already tested positive for COVID-19. The fear is that tight quarters and overall conditions could cause rapid spread of the virus. ICE says it is screening people as they come in, and isolating those who show symptoms. But advocates say those measures aren’t enough, especially for people particularly at risk because of their age or pre-existing medical conditions. There are now multiple lawsuits popping up around the country. And a federal court in San Francisco has ordered one woman immediately released because of the outbreak.

Angela Johnston is the Senior Producer of Uncuffed and an editor in the KALW newsroom. She holds a Master’s degree in journalism and graduated from KALW’s Audio Academy program. She’s worked for KALW in numerous roles - from the deputy news director, to the health and environment reporter, and she's covered everything from lead poisoning to climate change. Her work has aired on KALW, KQED, Reveal, and The Pulse. She also freelances as a producer and editor for Cosmic Standard and AFAR Media. Outside of work, she loves to swim in the bay, surf small waves on her longboard, read, backpack, cook, and garden.