News You Should Know

6 Things to Know – Layoff Concerns Coming With Closures, Homeless Getting Helping Hand in Pandemic

It’s Wednesday, July 8th - and NBC 6 has the top stories you need to know for the day

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It’s Wednesday, July 8th - and NBC 6 has the top stories you need to know for the day.

No. 1 - A day after ordering gyms to close in the county, Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez reversed course by saying fitness centers can stay open with certain safety precautions in place.

Gimenez announced the decision on Twitter after a meeting with medical experts and the county's Wellness Group. Gyms and fitness centers can remain open but anyone doing activities inside must wear a mask, while people outside must stay 10 feet apart. Gimenez announced a number of closures on Monday, including closing restaurants to indoor dining, as well as closing ballrooms, banquet facilities, party venues and short-term vacation rentals.

No. 2 - Help is on the way to Miami-Dade County's Jackson Health System and hospitals across the state, Florida's governor announced Tuesday.

Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state would be diverting 100 contract personnel to Jackson along with more medical personnel, mostly nurses, in response to the growing demand in the coronavirus pandemic. The move comes as the state Tuesday announced two new records in its fight against the coronavirus: the highest percentage of all tests coming back positive and the biggest one-day jump in the number of residents who have been hospitalized with the virus.

No. 3 - As Miami-Dade County businesses prepare for more changes, some employees are bracing for potential layoffs.

Businesses are anticipating changes due to Miami-Dade County’s latest executive order expected to halt dine-in service at restaurants starting Thursday. Mayor Carlos Gimenez signed the executive order, which also states that on-site dining at restaurants and cafeterias is limited to outdoor service only between the hours of 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. each day. To hear what workers say is their top concern, click here for a report from NBC 6 consumer investigator Sasha Jones.

No. 4 - With coronavirus cases surging in Florida, President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he’s “flexible” on the size of the Republican National Convention in Jacksonville.

The president spoke as a growing number of Senate Republicans said they’d skip the event, and even as the White House tried to tamp down nationwide concern about the virus's spread. Asked in an interview Tuesday whether he’d want to limit the gathering if the state’s coronavirus cases continue to rise, Trump replied that the decision “really depends on the timing.”

No. 5 - He was working in retail just a few months ago and now, he’s living in the streets of downtown Miami.

A man who asked us not to show his face or share his name agreed to use his voice to share a reality of the financial toll of the pandemic. He’s one of many in the streets striving to survive in the current world that has come with coronavirus. Click here to for his story and how one group aims to help from reporter Stephanie Bertini in her weekly Helping Hands series.

No. 6 - Weatherwise, South Florida will be dodging raindrops Wednesday afternoon with rain chances falling and rising by the end of the week. Keep your NBC 6 app handy for push alerts on any severe weather as well as First Alert Doppler 6000.

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