"I just love doing this work. I have to stay up. My mom died from COVID-19 on Saturday," said volunteer Edmonia Jackson, who hands out hot dog buns during a food and household supplies distribution event hosted by the Urban League of Metropolitan ºüÀêÊÓƵ on Friday, April 10, 2020, at the Urban League North Side Community Empowerment Center located at 1330 Aubert Avenue in ºüÀêÊÓƵ. The event had several sponsors including Enterprise Holdings Foundation, Emerson, the Regional Business Council, Sysco, the COVID-19 Regional Response Fund Coalition, Church of God in Christ Urban Initiatives Program, the Empowered Church, ºüÀêÊÓƵ County NAACP and Operation Food Search. They helped serve 1,500 families. Photo by Laurie Skrivan, lskrivan@post-dispatch.com
Laurie Skrivan
Cars snake through the parking lot of The Shops at Robert's Village in ºüÀêÊÓƵ as the Urban League of Metropolitan ºüÀêÊÓƵ distributes household supplies and food to those in need on Friday, April 10, 2020. Police were on scene directing traffic which was backed up around the block. Photo by Colter Peterson, cpeterson@post-dispatch.com.
Colter Peterson
"I just love doing this work. I have to stay up. My mom died from COVID-19 on Saturday," said volunteer Edmonia Jackson, center left, who hands out hotdog buns during a food and household supplies distribution event hosted by the Urban League of Metropolitan ºüÀêÊÓƵ on Friday, April 10, 2020, at the Urban League North Side Community Empowerment Center located at 1330 Aubert Avenue in ºüÀêÊÓƵ. The event had several sponsors including: Enterprise Holdings Foundation, Emerson, the Regional Business Council, Sysco, the COVID-19 Regional Response Fund Coalition, Church of God in Christ Urban Initiatives Program, the Empowered Church, ºüÀêÊÓƵ County NAACP and Operation Food Search. They helped to serve 1500 families. Photo by Laurie Skrivan, lskrivan@post-dispatch.com
Laurie Skrivan
Volunteers unpack cabbage to hand out at a food and household supply distribution event hosted by the Urban League of Metropolitan ºüÀêÊÓƵ on Friday, April 10, 2020, at the Urban League North Side Community Empowerment Center located at 1330 Aubert Avenue in ºüÀêÊÓƵ. They helped to serve 1500 families. Photo by Laurie Skrivan, lskrivan@post-dispatch.com
Laurie Skrivan
Joy Ceaser stands outside her van, joining thousands of people, waiting in line for household supplies and food items at a distribution event hosted by the Urban league of Metropolitan ºüÀêÊÓƵ on Friday, April 10, 2020, at the Urban League North Side Community Empowerment Center located at 1330 Aubert Avenue in ºüÀêÊÓƵ. The event had several sponsors including: Enterprise Holdings Foundation, Emerson, the Regional Business Council, Sysco, the COVID-19 Regional Response Fund Coalition, Church of God in Christ Urban Initiatives Program, the Empowered Church, ºüÀêÊÓƵ County NAACP and Operation Food Search. They helped to serve 1500 families. Photo by Laurie Skrivan, lskrivan@post-dispatch.com
ST. LOUIS — Hundreds of cars snaked slowly through city streets Friday to collect donated groceries and supplies as health officials across the region tallied more victims of the coronavirus and urged people to remain home for weekend religious celebrations.
The Urban League of Metropolitan ºüÀêÊÓƵ held a second food and supply giveaway that drew hundreds to the city’s Fountain Park neighborhood, where volunteers dropped more than 1,500 care packages of donated fruit, milk, produce, canned and dry goods, Easter candy and toiletries into the trunks of vehicles.
Cars started lining up more than six hours before the giveaway’s noon start time. Volunteers at last week’s Urban League giveaway in Jennings distributed more than 1,000 care packages. A third event is planned for Friday in East ºüÀêÊÓƵ.
“The need is overwhelming,†said Michael McMillan, president of the ºüÀêÊÓƵ chapter of the Urban League. The heavy turnout “just confirms the fact that so many people were in need before, but now people are economically devastated. They’ve lost hope and they’ve also lost opportunity in this time of uncertainty.â€
On Friday, Missouri reported 19 more deaths connected to the coronavirus, bringing the state’s total to 96, as Illinois deaths reached almost 600.
Missouri’s deaths are four times higher than the count one week ago. As of Friday afternoon, there were 3,799 known cases of COVID-19 in Missouri, according to the Department of Health and Senior Services.
In Illinois, there were 1,465 new cases and 68 new deaths reported Friday. The number of confirmed cases is nearing 18,000.
Illinois deaths are 1.8 times higher than one week earlier.
In the ºüÀêÊÓƵ region, including Illinois suburbs, at least 75 people with the disease have died.
“We’re still on the up-slope of the curve, and we have to be very mindful that we know that the surge of patients is going to be coming in the next couple of weeks,†said Dr. Alex Garza, head of the ºüÀêÊÓƵ Metropolitan Pandemic Task Force.
Garza said Friday that 584 patients who either tested positive for COVID-19 or were suspected of having it were in area hospitals, down from 611 on Thursday. There were 205 patients in ICUs on Friday, 14 fewer than the day before, and 160 patients on ventilators, 13 fewer than the prior day.
At least 36 COVID-19 patients were discharged from hospitals Thursday, Garza said.
He said it was too early to draw conclusions about changes in day-to-day statistics and warned that numbers are still trending upward.
He said ºüÀêÊÓƵ-area hospitals are “doing OK†handling the capacity of patients and about 900 ventilators are in use. He could not provide specifics on how many are for coronavirus patients or how many more are needed or have been requested, but he said hospitals are working to get more.
Garza urged people to continue practicing social distancing over the holiday weekend and to sacrifice weekend celebrations “for the greater good of the community.â€
“This will all pay off in the long run,†he said.
Most Christians celebrate Easter on Sunday. The eight-day Jewish festival of Passover began Wednesday evening.
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said in a news conference Friday that hotel rooms across the state, including some in Metro East, will be activated by next week for people who have COVID-19 symptoms and may need to move from their homes to limit exposing others. Similar plans also are underway in Missouri, with the announcement that a Florissant Quality Inn will be converted into an overflow hospital if more capacity is needed.
The U.S Army Corps of Engineers’ ºüÀêÊÓƵ District has been working to transform the Quality Inn into an alternative care site in preparation for the possibility of overflow coronavirus patients in the area. The Corps hopes to complete the renovation of 120 rooms for COVID-19 patients as early as Sunday.
Pritzker also said testing capacity will be expanded in Metro East as a lab was set to get three new COVID-19 rapid testing machines from Abbott Laboratories.
He said the Southern Illinois Healthcare Foundation system will be offering up to 470 swabs per day early next week in Metro East. The swabs will be sent to Anderson Hospital in Madison County for testing. This partnership will help East ºüÀêÊÓƵ and surrounding communities.
In Monroe County, Health Department Administrator John Wagner on Friday reported 43 people testing positive for the coronavirus, including 24 from the Garden Place senior living community in Columbia. Eight of those are employees there; four live outside Monroe County. Wagner said six of the 16 Garden Place residents who tested positive are hospitalized.
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson on Friday signed a $6 billion spending plan aimed at bolstering the state’s response to the pandemic.
The package allows his administration to distribute an expected influx of federal money to schools, local governments, universities and emergency management agencies. It also earmarks money for child care facilities, nursing homes and programs for the homeless.
Rachel Rice of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.
Hundreds crowd food Urban League food giveaway in ºüÀêÊÓƵ
Tremendous turnout for Urban League household supplies and food distribution event
Tremendous turnout for Urban League household supplies and food distribution event
Urban League of Metropolitan ºüÀêÊÓƵ provides supplies
Tremendous turnout for Urban League household supplies and food distribution event
Tremendous turnout for Urban League household supplies and food distribution event
Tremendous turnout for Urban League household supplies and food distribution event
Tremendous turnout for Urban League household supplies and food distribution event
Urban League of Metropolitan ºüÀêÊÓƵ provides supplies
Urban League of Metropolitan ºüÀêÊÓƵ provides supplies
Lawyers for a woman living at the camp sought to block the eviction of people by the city, which expressed concern over the spread of the coronavirus.
"I just love doing this work. I have to stay up. My mom died from COVID-19 on Saturday," said volunteer Edmonia Jackson, who hands out hot dog buns during a food and household supplies distribution event hosted by the Urban League of Metropolitan ºüÀêÊÓƵ on Friday, April 10, 2020, at the Urban League North Side Community Empowerment Center located at 1330 Aubert Avenue in ºüÀêÊÓƵ. The event had several sponsors including Enterprise Holdings Foundation, Emerson, the Regional Business Council, Sysco, the COVID-19 Regional Response Fund Coalition, Church of God in Christ Urban Initiatives Program, the Empowered Church, ºüÀêÊÓƵ County NAACP and Operation Food Search. They helped serve 1,500 families. Photo by Laurie Skrivan, lskrivan@post-dispatch.com
Cars snake through the parking lot of The Shops at Robert's Village in ºüÀêÊÓƵ as the Urban League of Metropolitan ºüÀêÊÓƵ distributes household supplies and food to those in need on Friday, April 10, 2020. Police were on scene directing traffic which was backed up around the block. Photo by Colter Peterson, cpeterson@post-dispatch.com.
"I just love doing this work. I have to stay up. My mom died from COVID-19 on Saturday," said volunteer Edmonia Jackson, center left, who hands out hotdog buns during a food and household supplies distribution event hosted by the Urban League of Metropolitan ºüÀêÊÓƵ on Friday, April 10, 2020, at the Urban League North Side Community Empowerment Center located at 1330 Aubert Avenue in ºüÀêÊÓƵ. The event had several sponsors including: Enterprise Holdings Foundation, Emerson, the Regional Business Council, Sysco, the COVID-19 Regional Response Fund Coalition, Church of God in Christ Urban Initiatives Program, the Empowered Church, ºüÀêÊÓƵ County NAACP and Operation Food Search. They helped to serve 1500 families. Photo by Laurie Skrivan, lskrivan@post-dispatch.com
Volunteers unpack cabbage to hand out at a food and household supply distribution event hosted by the Urban League of Metropolitan ºüÀêÊÓƵ on Friday, April 10, 2020, at the Urban League North Side Community Empowerment Center located at 1330 Aubert Avenue in ºüÀêÊÓƵ. They helped to serve 1500 families. Photo by Laurie Skrivan, lskrivan@post-dispatch.com
Joy Ceaser stands outside her van, joining thousands of people, waiting in line for household supplies and food items at a distribution event hosted by the Urban league of Metropolitan ºüÀêÊÓƵ on Friday, April 10, 2020, at the Urban League North Side Community Empowerment Center located at 1330 Aubert Avenue in ºüÀêÊÓƵ. The event had several sponsors including: Enterprise Holdings Foundation, Emerson, the Regional Business Council, Sysco, the COVID-19 Regional Response Fund Coalition, Church of God in Christ Urban Initiatives Program, the Empowered Church, ºüÀêÊÓƵ County NAACP and Operation Food Search. They helped to serve 1500 families. Photo by Laurie Skrivan, lskrivan@post-dispatch.com