It’s Wednesday, April 29th - and NBC 6 has the top stories you need to know for the day.
No. 1 - Miami-Dade allowed all parks, marinas and golf courses to reopen Wednesday amid the coronavirus pandemic. Mayor Carlos Gimenez said the rules in the emergency order will follow recommendations made by medical experts.
At the same time, both Miami Beach and Broward County reopened some parks and other public spaces on Wednesday, including marinas, golf courses and pools for limited use. Broward Mayor Dale Holness said it was due to the region's apparent downward trajectory of COVID-19 infections.
No. 2 - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is expected to release the state’s plan for what appears to be a gradual reopening one day after going to the White House armed with charts showing the progress the state has made.
Florida's number of new cases per day and the percent of tests coming back positive are both on downward trajectories over the last 14 days - meeting two of the criteria the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention laid out before saying a state could move to Phase 1 of the White House's plan for "Opening Up America Again."
No. 3 - The coronavirus has struck three-fold for one Nicaraguan family in Miami- Dade after a man and his parents recently died from the virus. Mario Mayorga Jr. and his two parents, Mario Sr. and Esperanza, passed away due to complications from COVID-19, family members said.
Family said Mario Jr. started feeling symptoms of COVID-19 in mid-March and then his condition worsened before he ultimately passed away this past Sunday. The 42-year-old worked for a company contracted to clean at Mt. Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach, but family members said they don't know exactly where he contracted the virus.
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No. 4 - Florida’s Department of Economic Opportunity has announced that many out-of-work residents who were deemed ineligible to receive benefits through the department's website may now qualify for federal assistance.
FDEO says, under the federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program, many Floridians that were previously deemed ineligible over this past weekend may now be eligible. People who applied for benefits before April 4th, including self-employed and gig workers, must reapply to receive assistance. Those who applied after April 5th, and were deemed ineligible, will be given information on how to apply by the DEO.
No. 5 - An artist in South Florida says first responders and health care professionals, the front line in the battle against COVID-19, are like superheroes to him.
Flavio Galvin has turned his Sunrise home into a personal tribute to those heroes and is using his paint brushes to show his gratitude during this time. To hear his story and see his work, click here for a report from NBC 6’s Ari Odzer.
No. 6 - Weatherwise, South Florida will be feeling warmer on Wednesday as wet weather gets set to arrive in the coming days. Keep your NBC 6 app handy for push alerts on any severe weather as well as First Alert Doppler 6000.
