April 17, 2020 | 5: 41pm
President Trump on Friday put out a series of Tweets calling for states to be “liberated” from coronavirus-related lockdowns — including Minnesota, Michigan and Virginia.
Meanwhile, Florida mayor Lenny Curry said he’ll open beaches and parks in Jacksonville for recreational use with proper social distancing guidelines, calling it a “pathway back to normal life.”
Gov. Andrew Cuomo took a more cautious approach, saying he wants to reopen New York’s economy — but only after a dramatic increase in testing.
Here’s what else we learned today:
New York crisis:
- President Trump attacked Cuomo as the New York leader gave his televised press conference Friday, tweeting that Cuomo should “spend more time ‘doing’ and less time ‘complaining.’”
- NYC saw 722 deaths in a 24-hour period after the previous two days saw increases of less than 600 each.
- A beloved NYPD detective who died from the virus was laid to rest by mourners in face masks at a heartbreaking funeral, as his widow burst into tears.
The pandemic worldwide:
- The total death toll in the ground-zero Chinese city of Wuhan was revised to report a massive uptick of 50 percent.
- In a tragic South Carolina case, six elderly residents died of the bug just weeks after attending the same funeral.
- Big restaurant chains have snapped up $30 million in federal loans meant help small businesses during the coronavirus crisis, with firms behind the Potbelly Sandwich Shop and Ruth’s Chris Steak House gobbling up big bucks.
Animals rule… and could wreak havoc:
- Studying live bats in US laboratories could pose a serious outbreak risk, much like a lab in Wuhan that authorities have warned about.
- Wild animals are reclaiming cities as humans are stuck at home, with one pride of sleepy lions napping on a paved road in South Africa.
Meanwhile…
- Patients who have survived the virus are adjusting to the idea that they may forever live with long-term effects.
- A Texas nurse has developed a mask using air conditioner parts that researchers say has better filtration than N95 masks.
