Here are some of the top stories from the past week from NBC 6 News.
South Florida Hospitals Prepare to Store Vaccine
Two South Florida hospitals are preparing to take in the vital COVID-19 vaccines that need to be stored in ultra frigid conditions as shots may be given early next week.
At Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood, they are looking forward to being able to load up that freezer in the building with the vaccine soon. The temperature inside is almost 100 degrees below zero. It will first go to doctors, nurses, and other health care workers who are treating COVID patients, and then to workers and residents at nursing homes. From the vaccine plant in Portage, Michigan, drivers will head to Detroit International Airport. The aircraft carrying the vaccine fly into MIA, where the vaccine will be unloaded onto trucks, and drivers will take the shipments to Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami and Memorial Regional in Hollywood.
City of Miami Begins Reinforcing Curfew This Weekend
Police began reinforcing a curfew in the city of Miami starting at midnight Saturday.
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Miami city commissioners unanimously passed a resolution Thursday to enforce Miami-Dade County’s 12 a.m. to 6 a.m. curfew until further notice. According to a city spokesperson, while the police may choose to issue a citation to an individual for breaking the curfew, the city still cannot collect the fine because of the governor’s order. Commissioners had previously decided back in October to stop enforcing the county's curfew. The resolution was introduced by Commissioner Joe Carollo, who said that Jackson Health’s CEO personally reached out to him.
Florida Governor Defends Search of Former Health Department Worker’s Home
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday defended the law enforcement investigation into a former Department of Health employee who the state says sent an unauthorized message about COVID-19 data.
DeSantis was asked about the encounter between Florida Department of Law Enforcement officers and Rebekah Jones during a roundtable discussion in Tampa regarding mental health for first responders. ones helped create the state's dashboard of coronavirus data. She was fired from her post in May after she raised questions about the data. Officers served a search warrant at Jones' home in Tallahassee Monday after a message had been sent that implored employees still at the Health Department "to speak up before another 17,000 people are dead. You know this is wrong. You don't have to be a part of this. Be a hero."
From Foster Care to College Graduate: FIU Student Defies Odds
Considering the childhood Maci Kean had, she has no business graduating with honors from Florida International University.
“By the time I was 11 years old, both of my parents have died due to drug addiction,” Maci said. She lost 75% of her hearing at age five because her parents ignored her ear infections. When they passed away, Maci moved in with relatives she had never met. She says she was emotionally abused in those years. At that point, most kids languish in the foster care system, but Maci’s life took a storybook turn at South Plantation High School. A teacher, Gigi Kean, got to know her and suggested to Maci that she join the Kean family, which already had two kids. This weekend, they got to celebrate a special moment with Maci’s college graduation from FIU. Click here for their emotional story from NBC 6 reporter Ari Odzer.
Florida Puppy Caught on Camera Being Saved From Alligator Attack Becomes Deputized
A dog in Southwest Florida who was thrust into the national spotlight when his owner saved him from an alligator attack has a new job.
The Lee County Sheriff’s Office posted a video on social media where Sheriff Carmine Marceno officially deputized four-month-old Gunner as a member of the department’s Deputy Dogs program. Gunner will help the department in its educational programs as well as promoting the program aimed at serving as community lookouts. Gunner’s rescue was caught on camera because of a wildlife surveillance project being run by the non-profit fStop Foundation in collaboration with the Florida Wildlife Federation.
Legendary Former NBC 6 Sports Director Bernie Rosen Dies
Bernie Rosen, a pioneer in the world of sports television who helped build the department at WTVJ-TV and spent over six decades as part of it, has died at the age of 93.
Rosen died at an Aventura hospital Tuesday night. Rosen graduated from the University of Miami and started at WTVJ in 1949. For 35 years, Rosen served as sports director, chronicling all local sports events including live coverage of the Orange Bowl, University of Miami football and wrestling. Rosen developed an exclusive relationship with Muhammad Ali – then Cassius Clay – as he trained at Miami’s 5th Street Gym. Rosen hired the nation’s first female sportscaster Jane Chastain in 1967. During his tenure, he helped develop national sports personalities like Chris Myers, Roy Firestone and Suzy Kolber and put local sports fixture Tony Segreto on the air.
