The coronavirus pandemic that’s caused many Americans to avoid airports has others booking spur-of-the moment trips at dirt-cheap ticket prices. The U.S. government has restricted travel from most of Europe as well as Iran and China. But there are no limits on flying within the U.S. or to and from other destinations abroad. Airlines have been slashing prices to cope…
ROME (AP) – The World Health Organization is declaring that the global coronavirus crisis is now a pandemic. The assessment comes as Italy is weighing even tighter restrictions on daily life and has announced billions in financial relief to cushion economic shocks from the coronavirus. Premier Giuseppe Conte says he will consider requests to toughen an already extraordinary lockdown. The…
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) – As U.S. sports leagues weigh whether to bar fans from ballparks and stadiums to help stall the coronavirus outbreak, San Francisco Giants pitcher Jeff Samardzija is one of the few players who can tell them exactly what that looks like. He pitched for the Chicago White Sox in a 2015 game played without fans in Baltimore…
ATLANTA (AP) – Three more cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in Georgia, bringing the number of cases so far to five, Gov. Brian Kemp’s office said Saturday. The Georgia Department of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say one individual is from Cobb County and recently returned from Italy. That person is under isolation at…
NEW ORLEANS (AP) – Authorities say a man has been struck and killed by a Mardi Gras float during a parade in New Orleans. It was the second death in days involving a parade float and cast a pall over the Carnival festivities. Police said in a statement that the death occurred Saturday night on a downtown parade route of…
NEW YORK (AP) – Leaders in New York City are blaming an ambush on police officers there on an atmosphere of anti-police rhetoric. The gunman was taken into custody Sunday after attacks that morning and the night before wounded two officers. Police Commissioner Dermot Shea lashed out at activists who have held demonstrations against excessive force by police in recent…
BILOXI, Miss. (AP) – The director of a coastal Mississippi convention center says an area of the building has been thoroughly cleaned and disinfected following reports of illnesses among groups that had events there. Gulf coast news outlets report dozens of people who attended a Mardi Gras Ball at the Mississippi Coast Convention Center last weekend reported gastro-intestinal problems. People…
BEIJING (AP) – Mainland China has reported the virus death toll has risen to 811, surpassing SARS fatalities in the 2002-2003 outbreak. China’s National Health Commission on Sunday says the total cases of the new virus have increased to to 37,198. The outbreak of SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, killed 774 people and infected more than 8,000 worldwide. Like…
CLINTON, Miss. (AP) – A mother and six children have died in a house fire in a suburb of Jackson, Mississippi. The fire happened around 12:30 a.m. in the city of Clinton. A city spokesman says the children ranged in age from 1 to about 15. The mother was 33. He says the father tried to rescue the family and…
FLEMING ISLAND, Fla. – A Florida contractor is facing murder charges after the body of a disgruntled customer was found in a Georgia landfill. Authorities say the body of 65-year-old Susan Mauldin was found last week in a Folkston, Georgia, landfill. She disappeared in October after demanding a refund from 45-year-old Corey Binderim, who had not finished the job she…
