COVID-19 update
Travis County’s current number of COVID hospitalizations has climbed 301 which is up from 295 this time yesterday. But as that number has gone up slightly, there’s also been a slight dip in ICU bed usage. Of the 42,856 confirmed cases since March, 3,470 are active. 38,879 are recoveries.
Active cases in Williamson County have been going down a bit and this morning, there are 868 of them. 86 of those active cases involve hospitalization. And that’s actually an increase of 10. Overall, 15,959 cases are confirmed, resulting in 14,910 recoveries.
Austin is precariously close to being put back into Stage 5 on the COVID risk chart. That would mean the area seeing a seven day rolling average of 50 new hospitalizations a day. We’re not quite there yet. Mayor Steve Adler says the latest spike could be tied to just a couple of days around Thanksgiving, and he’s hopeful that a downtrend may be coming.
“It could be that the number is going to go back down here. Maybe we plateau at about 40 and just stay there for a while and that all we see is that Thanksgiving Day,” Adler says.
Based on some discussions he’s had this week with Austin Public Health, the early anecdotal evidence is showing that that could very likely be the case.
COVID-19 vaccine
Vaccines are now at UT Dell Medical School and will be administered to health care workers today. The FDA has released a list of possible side effects, one of which could be an allergic reaction. Allergist Dr. Howland tells CBS Austin that that’s why it will be advised to not leave the clinic immediately after the vaccine.
“Wait for 20 or 30 minutes when you’ve been vaccinated to make sure you don’t get a reaction. If you do get a serious allergic reaction, the treatment is a shot of epinephrine or adrenaline.” Howland says.
But he says serious reactions have so far been very rare in the COVID vaccine. Dell Medical has about 3,000 doses, and a second shipment will arrive next month.
Austin School District Superintendent Stephanie Elizalde is outlining criteria for certain teachers and staff to get the COVID vaccine during the second phase of dosing. Elizalde says those who have the most direct interaction with students will be prioritized.
“That would be a priority over others,teachers that work with special needs students,” says Elizalde.
Teacher age will also be taken into consideration. Elizalde also says janitors, bus drivers and staff and similar support roles will get priority. It’s not clear when those vaccinations might begin.
Austin’s airport continues to feel the sting of the pandemic. Its latest passenger traffic report does show some signs of life as October surpassed 500,000 passengers for the first time since March. But the 507,858 people who flew through Austin are still down by nearly 68% from October of last year.
Austin City Council and School Board elections
Today is runoff day for both the Austin City Council and the Austin School Board. On the council, both District 6 and District 10 are up for grabs on the school board. District 5 and 8 will be decided but unlike the City Council races, the AISD seats are at large positions. That means you can cast a vote if you live anywhere within the school district boundaries, not just in the AISD districts.
Austin Transportation Partnership
The Capital Metro board is preparing to shift oversight of Project Connect to the Austin Transportation Partnership. That’s a newly formed board that will decide how exactly your taxes will be spent on that $7.1 billion public transit overhaul approved at the ballots last month. The board members will be chosen this week and Austin Mayor Steve Adler is said to be a front runner for becoming a part of it.
Nau’s antique signs stolen
An old classic Austin restaurant has had two of its valuable signs stolen. The soda fountain and pharmacy Nau’s Enfield Drug used to have three antique Coca Cola signs installed on top of its roof, but now his owner, Laura Labay tells KXAN at least one burglar knocked out all of their cameras one night and then the other climbed the roof and took two of the signs. She says they are worth thousands a peace.
“We’ve been burglarized throughout the years and normally it’s for narcotics or drugs or money or something. And this is just one of those things where it’s almost really personal,” says Labay.
She’s asking pawn shops and dealers a light to be on the look at and is offering a reward for the signs returned.
Austin firefighter arrested for drunk driving
Austin firefighter Christopher Cortez is currently serving a 16 day suspension due to a drunk driving arrest over the summer in San Antonio. Cortez reportedly had a blood alcohol content of .167 but officials say he was not acting belligerent when he was pulled over by San Antonio police and was actually very cooperative. Chief Joel Baker says Cortez has taken full responsibility and has agreed not to appeal his suspension.
This news and more on News Radio KLBJ:
https://omny.fm/shows/klbjam-flash-briefing-1/am-newscast-12-15-20
