It’s Monday, April 12th – and NBC 6 has the top stories for the day.
No. 1 - Miami-Dade County's curfew — which was put in place last year as the coronavirus pandemic intensified in South Florida — will be lifted at 12:01 a.m. Monday.
Mayor Daniella Levine Cava made the announcement last week as the county's positivity rate has been steadily trending downward and as vaccine availability has increased. "After a year of great challenge, this is an important step in our fight toward economic recovery," Levine Cava tweeted Sunday. "However, I urge our residents to remember that we all still have a responsibility to do our part to stop the spread." Miami-Dade County reached 460,653 cases on Sunday, according to figures released by the state's department of health.
No. 2 - A South Florida mother is pleads for justice after her son was killed in a hit-and-run.
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Vivian Blanco says her son Anthony Mejias was traveling back home Easter weekend from college to spend time with his family. When she didn’t hear from him, she knew something was wrong. “I need to find justice for my son. I’ve lost my son already but I need to get justice for him," Blanco said Sunday as she tried to hold back her tears.According to Florida Highway Patrol, the 19-year-old was struck and killed Friday, April 2 around 2:30 a.m. at Orange Avenue and Prince Street near Orlando.
No. 3 - Hundreds of protesters took over AIA and Las Olas Boulevard Saturday for the Million Maskless March.
The event protested the use of face masks one year after they became mandatory in Broward County. Many protesters were carrying American flags and Trump 2020 flags. At one point, the protest moved from the beach and became a march down A1A. Many protesters say they don’t believe the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or trust the science which states that wearing face coverings can lower a person’s chances of catching COVID-19.
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No. 4 - FEMA Master Public Information Officer Mike Jachles announced that starting on Monday, Hard Rock Stadium will begin administering the Pfizer vaccine to Florida residents without the need of an appointment.
He also announced that the stadium will be expanding its hours of operation from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week. "This is the first site in South Florida with the expanded hours, so we're here to serve anybody that wants the Pfizer vaccine," said Jachles. "This is going to be a big opportunity for people that may be through work schedules or family schedules that haven't been able to get the vaccine to now take advantage of that and get inoculated." While there's no appointment required, Jachles urged eligible Florida residents to use the vaccination portal to preregister for the vaccine before arriving for their shot to cut down wait times.
No. 5 - Prince Philip, who died Friday at age 99, will be laid to rest with all the honors due a prince of the United Kingdom and a consort to Queen Elizabeth II. But the coronavirus pandemic has required changes to the well-prepared plans for Philip’s passing.
Flags on government buildings and royal residences were lowered to half-mast and will remain there until 8 a.m. BST (3 a.m. ET) on the day after his funeral. His death was marked with 41-gun salutes at noon on Saturday at locations across the country, including the Tower of London and Edinburgh Castle, as well as in Gibraltar and on Royal Navy ships at sea. Given his age, the detailed plans for what should happen after Philip's death — codenamed "Operation Forth Bridge" — have been in place for years.
No. 6 - The Miami-Dade Police Department on Saturday said a traffic stop resulted in the seizure of a weapon, ammunition and more than $43,000.
The agency posted an image on Twitter of the seized firearm, 21 rounds of 9-millimeter ammunition and a total of $43,362. The MDPD said the traffic stop was conducted by an officer from the South District, which is headquartered in Cutler Bay.
