A person more than 65 years old died Thursday in Tulare County, raising the county's coronavirus death count to 11 people. No other details would be released to the public, officials said, because of privacy laws. “We offer our sincere condolences to the friends and family who lost their loved...
NorCal Doctor: Not Everyone Needs COVID-19 Testing
"We almost don't need them for everybody," Dr. Roberta Luskin-Hawk says of COVID-19 tests. Her reasoning is explained below, but it also comes from a wealth of medical experience. She is an infectious disease specialist who worked with Dr. Anthony Fauci in Chicago during the AIDS epidemic. And she is the...
Need to Boost Your Grades? In Fresno Unified, There’s Still Time.
Fresno Unified students are guaranteed to receive grades no lower than what they had already earned in the second semester, Superintendent Bob Nelson announced Thursday evening. Classes and testing were abruptly halted with the closure of schools after March 13 because of the COVID-19 epidemic and the need to keep...
Nurses Weigh Their Principles vs Safety in Virus Fight
Paramedics rushed another critical COVID-19 patient into the emergency room, and Chicago nurse Cynthia Riemer felt her adrenaline kick in. “Your heart starts racing,” she said. “You're thinking, 'How quickly and safely can we get them intubated?' Because if we don't, in the next five or 10 minutes, they could...
Fresno Extends Shelter-in-Place: Fines for Violations, Masks Mandatory for Workers
The city of Fresno has strengthened and extended its shelter-in-place emergency ordinance through May 6 to combat the coronavirus. The previous shelter-in-place order was set to expire at the end of Sunday. At a Friday morning teleconference, Mayor Lee Brand announced new measures that include requiring employees at essential businesses...
Special Report: Fresno Unified Parents Want More Learning Amid COVID-19
When schools across the Valley abruptly closed after March 13 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, educators scrambled to pull together lesson plans to keep students learning as they sheltered at home. Some teachers banded together to get classes posted onto YouTube channels, while others quickly set up teleconference classes and...
10 Los Banos Health Clinic Workers Positive for COVID-19
Ten workers at a healthcare clinic in Los Banos have tested positive for COVID-19, Merced County public health officials said Thursday evening. The 10 people work at Sutter Health's clinic, which is at 1253 W. I Street. The clinic is closed while it is disinfected and people who had contact...
Coronavirus Likes to Replicate, but New Drug Might Stop It
Viral replication has swept the nation during the pandemic. But a new treatment might put a stop to one of COVID-19's main attacks on our bodies. President Donald Trump announced at the coronavirus task force briefing Thursday afternoon that Pfizer has found a “promising new treatment that might prevent the...
Here’s Your First Look at Fresno’s Surge Field Hospital
Local leaders invited Fresno-area media on Thursday to check out the field hospital that will provide extra healthcare capacity if the expected surge in coronavirus patients materializes in the region. The hospital, which can accommodate up to 265 beds, is inside the Exhibit Hall at the Fresno Convention Center. Dr....
ESPN Halts MMA Fights at Valley Casino During COVID-19 Pandemic
UFC 249 was canceled Thursday after ESPN and parent company Disney stopped UFC President Dana White’s plan to keep fighting amid the coronavirus pandemic. The fights were scheduled for April 18 at Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino, on tribal land 40 miles outside of Fresno. ESPN had planned to televise...