chicagotribune--2020-05-01--Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Here’s what happened April 30 with COVID-19 in the Chicago area

Illinois officials on Thursday announced 2,563 more known cases of COVID-19 and 141 additional deaths , bringing the total case count to 52,918 and the death toll to 2,355 statewide since the start of the outbreak .
The 141 fatalities reported in the previous 24 hours was the second-highest daily death toll , following 144 deaths reported Tuesday .
The 2,563 new known cases were also the second-highest daily total .
The new numbers were reported ahead of Gov .
J.B. Pritzker ’ s extended stay-at-home order taking effect .
Starting Friday , the new directive requires all Illinois residents @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mask when they can ’ t maintain a 6-foot social distance in public .
Here ’ s what else you need to know about the new face mask rules .
The requirement that Illinois residents wear facial coverings in public to prevent the spread of coronavirus has given rise to a new advertising vehicle — branded face masks promoting everything from fast food restaurants to sports teams .
All major sports leagues have begun producing officially-licensed team logo masks .
Universal Music Group is making masks featuring artists from Willie Nelson to Justin @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mask with the cast from the 1990s TV show , “ Beverly Hills , 90210.
” Many of the proceeds of branded mask sales , at least initially , are helping to fund COVID-19 relief efforts .
But turning personal protective equipment into an ad for a real estate agent may raise eyebrows , even in the new normal of a worldwide health crisis .
Read more here .
— Robert Channick Following another week where more than 100 south and southwest suburban residents are confirmed to have died from COVID-19 , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the virus , according to a Southtown analysis .
At least 326 people in South Cook County and 153 people in Will County have died of complications from the virus since March 19 , according to data from the Cook County medical examiner ’ s office and Will County public health officials .
About half of the South Cook patients who died were at least 75 years old and more than 80 % were at least 65 years old , according to data from the Cook County medical examiner ’ s office @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who have died of COVID-19 in South Cook County were under 40 .
Read more here .
—Zak Koeske 5:42 p.m. : Frustration reigns amid efforts to get youths out of Cook County ’ s juvenile detention center before virus hits “ I ’ m like , what ’ s going on ?
You got me worried , now you ’ re not responding , ” she told the Tribune .
Her son was not sick with COVID-19 , as she had dreaded .
But he had been arrested — picked up on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ County ’ s Juvenile Temporary Detention Center .
Thanks to expansive preemptive testing and other measures , the virus has not taken hold in the juvenile center as quickly or ferociously as it has at the Cook County Jail , where hundreds of adult detainees have fallen ill .
But advocates told the Tribune they have at times encountered roadblocks and confusion in trying to win release for juveniles — and feared that their young clients were being denied a fair chance to go home and shelter during the pandemic .
“ They @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ re kids , they make mistakes , their brain isn ’ t developed , they don ’ t understand the consequences , ” said Cook County Public Defender Amy Campanelli .
“ The judges at juvenile court have released a lot of our kids , but there ’ s more work to do ... everybody should get a shot at a review .
There shouldn ’ t be a technical reason not to do it . ''
On Thursday , after advocates voiced concerns and reporters raised questions , Chief Judge Timothy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an order mandating that all juvenile detention reviews would have a chance to be heard in court .
Read more here .
—Megan Crepeau The City of Chicago released data Thursday showing COVID-19 continues to spread more slowly through city residents , with the city ’ s public health commissioner saying modeling shows the city should be in much better shape to lessen restrictions in a month .
But she said that , with restrictions maintained , she expects a downward trajectory in new cases by the end of May .
She said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would not be overwhelmed if restrictions were loosened June 1 — provided the city employs a plan crafted “ carefully and thoughtfully ” with “ an appropriate level ” of social distancing .
“ We feel confident that ( if such steps are followed ) … we ’ ll be able to handle any increased infections that we do see in a way that won ’ t make us have to take major steps backward , even if we have to adjust moving forward , ” she said .
The latest projections come @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of a broader release of raw data on Chicago ’ s data portal .
Arwady said the goal of the new information was for residents and researchers to have the chance to dig into more data themselves .
In its latest analysis , the city says one key measure of a pandemic ’ s trajectory — so-called “ doubling days ” — continues to chart in the right direction .
Doubling days are the number of days it takes a figure – such as new cases or deaths -- to double .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is .
Arwady acknowledged that — because of the boost in the number of tests — that figure alone could become an unreliable measure of the pandemic ’ s growth .
After all , boosted testing is likely flagging more cases that previously went unreported or wouldn ’ t have been caught with earlier , stricter rules on who could be tested .
To help researchers crunch figures , the city is putting out daily updates of case counts , testing figures , deaths , hospital capacity and broader data on those reporting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are being updated three times a week for case counts , case rates and mortality by zip code , with more precise maps showing deaths by race and ethnicity .
Once a week , the city said it plans to release epidemiological trajectory data , such as measurements of “ doubling days.
” —Joe Mahr The number of inmates at Chicago ’ s high-rise federal jail who are positive for COVID-19 jumped to 48 on Thursday – almost seven times the number reported by prison officials just a day earlier .
The statistics @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bureau of Prisons web site , which has kept a running tally on the spread of coronavirus among the roughly 150,000 people in federal custody across the country .
On Wednesday , there were only seven inmates at the Metropolitan Correctional Center who were listed as having tested positive for the virus , according to the prisons bureau .
In addition to the four dozen inmates who are now positive , the bureau reported that 20 MCC staff members have confirmed infections .
So far there have been no fatalities .
The spike @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a series of swings in the prisons bureau numbers that have so far gone unexplained by prisons bureau officials .
The bureau did not respond to multiple requests from the Chicago Tribune this week for an explanation of how its coronavirus data is being tabulated .
One possible explanation for the increase is more testing .
Last week , the prisons bureau announced in a news release that it was expanding testing around its system on asymptomatic inmates , since it ’ s now understood the virus can be quietly spread by an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The release did not state whether the MCC was among the facilities where the new testing machines would be used .
The lack of information has continued to raise alarms in Chicago ’ s legal community , where criminal defense attorneys have been trying — mostly in vain — to get clients released due to the disease ’ s presumed ability to spread quickly in the MCC ’ s notoriously cramped quarters .
`` Clearly , the numbers on the BOP web site can not be trusted , ” John Murphy , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Program in Chicago , told the Tribune earlier this week .
Nationwide , 33 federal inmates have died as of Thursday due to coronavirus complications , according to the BOP .
Nearly 1,700 inmates have tested positive for the virus , including 426 who have now recovered .
—Jason Meisner 3:55 p.m. : City officials say O ’ Hare ’ s massive $ 8.5 billion expansion project is moving ahead .
But bleak outlook for air travel could force it to scale back .
Chicago ’ s aviation department insists the coronavirus pandemic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ billion expansion plan for O ’ Hare International Airport , but there are growing signs the city will have no choice but to reconsider the scope and timing of the project .
With flights canceled , jets grounded and passenger traffic plummeting because of the coronavirus , the airlines — which are being counted on to help pay for the expansion — are facing their most severe economic crisis since the Sept. 11 , 2001 , terrorist attacks .
“ Never before has our airline , or our industry , faced such a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and CEO Doug Parker said in a statement Thursday announcing first quarter earnings .
Other airports have already said they were considering postponing multi-billion dollar expansion plans because of the pandemic , including DFW Airport in Texas and San Diego ’ s international airport .
And there are signs the architectural firm picked to design the $ 2.2 billion Global Terminal — the project ’ s centerpiece — has encountered turbulence on the project .
“ If the airlines can ’ t afford this and don ’ t need terminals as large as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fiduciary duty to the airlines and to the community not to spend money they don ’ t have , '' said Henry Harteveldt , travel industry analyst and president of the Atmosphere Research Group .
Read more here .
—Mary Wisniewski , Blair Kamin and Lauren Zumbach 3:36 p.m. : Catholics to pray outside Holy Name Cathedral for reopening of churches A group of Chicago-area Catholics will gather Friday at Holy Name Cathedral to pray for the reopening of churches in the Archdiocese of Chicago .
“ We are desperately in need of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that is sorely lacking in the Archdiocese of Chicago , ” Joseph Scheidler , one of the organizers of the prayer gathering and a prominent Catholic anti-abortion activist , said in a news release .
In response to the coronavirus pandemic , Cardinal Blase Cupich announced last month that Mass would be suspended in all churches , the most rigid restrictions for the nation ’ s third-largest archdiocese since the 1918-19 Spanish flu epidemic .
The group , the newly formed St. Charles Borromeo Society , said they asked the archdiocese to ease @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Cupich declined .
The group said they would pray at Holy Name at noon every Friday until churches open .
3:25 p.m. : ′It ’ s a blessing they are still together ’ : Married 70 years , couple behind popular newsstand dies of COVID-19 , hours apart “ I said to him , ‘ Dad , is there anything you need ?
’ And he just said , ‘ Mama , ’ ” recounted Kaage ’ s eldest son , Irv Kaage III .
“ I said , ‘ I ’ m @ @ @ @ @ @ @ me just a little time.
’ ” Within hours , Irv Kaage Jr. and his wife , Muriel , married for 70 years , were together again , their hospital beds side by side , close enough so they could hold hands .
For the next two days , they would remain together , as they had been for all of their adult lives .
Irv Kaage Jr. , 92 , was the first to pass away on April 26 .
Muriel , 90 , followed just 36 hours later , on April @ @ @ @ @ @ @ blessing they are still together , ” Kaage III said .
“ If one of them had recovered from this , they would have died from a broken heart.
” The Kaages , longtime residents of Chicago ’ s Edison Park neighborhood and , for the last six years , residents of neighboring Park Ridge , died of complications from COVID-19 , according to the Cook County Medical Examiner ’ s Office .
Read more here .
—Jennifer Johnson Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Thursday said she would only lay off or furlough city @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , last resort , ” but that she would do so before considering raising property taxes .
Speaking at a news conference about reopening Chicago police detective areas , Lightfoot said she isn ’ t now considering following other cities in laying off workers or cutting back their hours or pay .
“ As somebody who worked in city government in days when there were mandatory furlough days and layoffs , that ’ s demoralizing to your workforce , ” Lightfoot said .
But it ’ s too early to say for sure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the city ’ s bottom line .
“ I can ’ t tell you yet what the full magnitude of the impact is on our 2020 budget , and we don ’ t start our formal process of looking ahead to 2021 until , really , the end of May , beginning of June , ” she said .
As for when she might consider such cuts : “ But I view layoffs and furloughs as a last , last , last resort .
Well , last is raising property taxes.
” —John @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and notepads , hello germ-zapping robots .
How hotels are doubling down on hygiene — and what that means for your next stay .
The coronavirus crisis has not only sent the hotel industry reeling by cratering occupancy rates .
It ’ s forcing hotels to ramp up their cleaning protocols and hygiene — things that will be more of a priority for consumers in a post-pandemic world , where safe is the new sexy .
“ What would have been in the back of customers ’ minds is now front and center @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s global head of new brand development .
Hilton , Marriott and , as of Wednesday , Chicago-based Hyatt , have all announced plans for updated cleaning standards and other steps aimed at protecting the health of guests and staff at thousands of properties around the world .
Home-rental companies like Airbnb have made similar moves .
Demand for hotel rooms has tanked during the pandemic .
Among the U.S. hotels that are still open , about three out of four rooms are vacant , according to data released Thursday by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s central business district , the occupancy rate is just shy of 14 % .
When people start staying in hotels again , they ’ ll notice some changes as new hygiene measures get rolled out in the coming weeks and months .
Expect less furniture to make way for more social distancing in lobbies and other public areas .
Hand sanitizing stations will be highly visible .
So will housekeepers , whose role moves from behind-the-scenes to center stage as they frequently and conspicuously wipe down railings , elevator buttons and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more here .
—Lori Rackl Gov .
J.B. Pritzker said Thursday that the state has met his goal of conducting at least 10,000 tests daily for the new coronavirus each day since first surpassing that benchmark last week .
Officials on Thursday announced 2,563 more known cases of COVID-19 and 141 additional deaths , bringing the total case county to 52,918 and the death toll to 2,355 statewide since the start of the outbreak .
The 141 fatalities reported in the previous 24 hours was the second-highest daily death toll , following 144 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ known cases were also the second-highest daily total .
Officials have attributed the growth in known cases in part to more robust testing .
More than 13,000 tests were conducted in the preceding 24 hours .
Pritzker also publicized the opening of two more state-run drive-thru testing sites , in Waukegan and East St. Louis , that will open next week .
—Dan Petrella Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Thursday that Oprah Winfrey will be the speaker at the virtual ceremony , which will be held in mid-June .
“ We are thrilled and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ joining us for this incredible moment with Chicago ’ s high school seniors , ” said Lightfoot .
“ The times we are living in are historic and stunning , forcing us all to take a deep look at who we are as a people and our place in the world .
No one knows this better than Oprah , and I join all of Chicago in looking forward to hearing the wisdom she ’ ll be sharing with our incredible young people as they take this unforgettable next step on their life @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have been canceled because of the school shutdown prompted by the coronavirus .
Schools will remain closed at least through the end of the current school year , which for CPS is June 18 .
Read more here .
—Hannah Leone Mayor Lori Lightfoot says she has no immediate plans to follow New York City ’ s lead in shutting down public transportation overnight to deep clean it .
“ Public transportation is really , really important , ” Lightfoot said .
Not everyone has the resources to call a cab or rideshare @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ I would say that that ’ s something that the mayor of the city of Chicago certainly should lead , ” Pritzker said .
`` We want to make sure that people are safe taking mass transit.
” He said he knows cleaning is taking place but isn ’ t sure of the schedule .
—John Byrne and Dan Petrella The five Republicans in Illinois ’ 18-member U.S. House delegation are asking Democratic Gov .
J.B. Pritzker for a phased plan to reopen the state ’ s economy , saying “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on this course for the duration of the pandemic.
” “ The fact is , communities across the state are desperate for a plan to navigate the reopening of business in a responsible , reasonable manner , ” the congressmen wrote in a letter to Pritzker on Thursday .
“ There is a strong desire among the people we represent to move forward with a plan focusing on balancing our health and our economy .
It should not be an either/or proposition , ” the congressmen said .
The letter , signed by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Kinzinger of Channahon , Rodney Davis of Taylorville , Mike Bost of Murphysboro and Darin LaHood of Peoria , appears to have come a day after they spoke to Pritzker by phone .
The letter references matters “ discussed on the call yesterday.
” The letter by the five Republicans represents yet another effort within the state ’ s minority political party to push Pritzker into a more widespread opening of Illinois ’ economy than the Democratic governor has indicated he will allow .
Read more here .
—Rick Pearson 1:55 p.m. : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mask in public start May 1 .
Here ’ s everything to know .
Beginning Friday , all Illinois residents over age 2 must wear a face mask when they can ’ t maintain a 6-foot social distance in public .
Studies show that the coronavirus can spread between people interacting in close proximity , including people who are not showing symptoms .
The Tribune has compiled resources below on what fabrics are best for homemade masks , how to make your own face mask , and who is making and donating them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ here .
Chicago ’ s famed Steppenwolf Theatre on Halsted Street has canceled productions on its stages further out than most of its peers .
The theater , closed by the pandemic since March , now will stay dark until at least mid-October for “ Good Night , and Good Luck , '' a new play adapted from the 2005 George Clooney movie .
First preview is planned for Oct. 22 .
Productions planned for this spring and summer will be staged at a later date , the theater announced Thursday .
In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on its famous ensemble for some streaming productions .
An upcoming “ virtual reading ” of Yasen Peyankov ’ s adaptation of “ The Seagull '' will feature ensemble members Ian Barford , James Vincent Meredith , Amy Morton and others .
In mid-June , Austin Pendleton will direct a starry cast of more than 30 ensemble members including John Malkovich , Joan Allen , Laurie Metcalf and William Petersen .
Both will available only to Steppenwolf members , or subscribers .
Read more here .
—Chris Jones 1:18 p.m. : Here are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Illinois order that starts Friday Starting Friday , Illinois residents older than age 2 will be required to wear masks or face coverings in public , according to an order from Gov .
J.B. Pritzker .
With surgical masks in short supply , state residents are encouraged to don fabric masks or homemade face coverings .
Many people have been making and distributing them , and a wide variety of cloth masks are available online , including through some local retailers .
The owners of the Buttermilk restaurants in Naperville and Geneva and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a federal class action lawsuit charging their insurance company wrongly denied claims for lost income due to the coronavirus pandemic .
Filed in the eastern division of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois , the suit says the companies purchased the insurance from Wisconsin-based Society Insurance Inc. to cover their losses and expenses in situations in which their businesses are forced to close , Naperville attorney David Fish said .
Read more here .
—Erin Hegarty Resistance to Gov .
J.B. Pritzker ’ s extension of his statewide stay-at-home @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in northwest Illinois filing a federal lawsuit contending that Pritzker ’ s executive actions have demonstrated “ illegal and discriminatory hostility to religious practice , churches , and people of faith.
” The lawsuit was filed on behalf of the Beloved Church , a roughly 80-person congregation in the town of Lena , by the Thomas More Society , a conservative public interest law firm in Chicago .
Stephen Cassell , the church ’ s pastor , is listed as a co-plaintiff with the church .
The complaint takes issue with how Pritzker @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nonessential , and alleges that Pritzker and other law enforcement and public health officials have “ intentionally denigrated Illinois churches and pastors and people of faith by relegating them to second-class citizenship.
” Read more here .
—Antonia Ayres-Brown 12:23 p.m. : Amid an entertainment world shut down by coronavirus , The Hideout is still working to make a human connection Longtime followers of the Hideout know pushing forward is the modus operandi of the venue .
Being first is too .
Whether it was closing down operations well before the state ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ GoFundMe for employees , the Hideout has never been afraid of making challenging , progressive decisions in the face of adversity .
I t comes as no surprise then that rather than simply go silent , the Hideout has taken its beloved IRL bar and performance venue experience online .
Read more here .
—Britt Julious The humans of Chicagoland are lonely and feeling a little hopeless right now , according to a new survey meant to gauge the well-being of Americans during the coronavirus pandemic .
About 36 % of respondents in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they felt “ hopeless about the future ” at least once in the last week , and 43 % reported that they felt lonely at least one day .
More than a third reported at least one day of feeling depressed .
With their lives disrupted by COVID-19 , many are worried about jobs too .
When the surveyors asked how likely respondents felt that it was that they would have a job in 30 days , 42 % in the Chicago area reported that it was “ not too likely ” or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 23 % of local residents surveyed said that at some time in the past 30 days , they had run out of food and had no money to buy more .
And 29 % of Chicago-area residents reported that they worried that they didn ’ t have enough food to last before they ’ d have money to spend .
Reports of food insecurity were similar nationally .
Read more here .
—Jennifer Smith Richards As American colleges and churches abruptly closed last month because of the pandemic , seminaries followed suit , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wait before fulfilling their ambitions of becoming priests or pastors .
Chicago historically has had more seminaries than any other metro area in the country , according to the Encyclopedia of Chicago , so the shutdowns have hit hard here .
The decision to postpone ordinations is up to each individual diocese .
The Joliet Diocese has also delayed its ordinations .
The Diocese of Gary , however , will proceed with a private ordination for its one new priest .
The ordination will comply with all social distancing guidelines , a diocese @ @ @ @ @ @ @ —Javonte Anderson 9:53 a.m. : Toilet paper : Why is it still so hard to find ?
When will stores have rolls ?
Paper goods giant Georgia-Pacific is cranking out 1.5 million more rolls of toilet paper a day than two months ago , but George Bugg still can ’ t find it on the shelves of the Decatur , Georgia , stores where he shops .
Bugg wants to know : What gives ?
Nearly two months into new shopping habits brought on by the coronavirus pandemic , why haven ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ paper and paper towels ?
“ I didn ’ t think we are using much more than usual .
But , in the last month , I haven ’ t been able to find it at Sam ’ s .
I went to Kroger the next day , the paper towel rack was empty .
There were a few off-brand packs of toilet paper , and people were picking up those , ” said Bugg .
It ’ s the same across much of the nation .
In response , manufacturers have restarted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their 24-hour , seven-day operations , and shipped more paper faster .
But they haven ’ t caught up to panicked consumer buying and societal and business changes that have altered American loo-ology .
The situation leaves business marketeers unable to predict when the TP shortage might end .
Read more here .
—The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Personal incomes also fell sharply last month , declining by 2 % with wages and salaries , the largest part of incomes , falling by 3.1 % as millions of Americans started getting lay-off notices .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ declines as “ consumers canceled , restricted or redirected their spending.
” Read more here .
—Associated Press 8:48 a.m. : Mask up : Art Institute lions , Daley Center Picasso get coronavirus face coverings Gov .
J.B. Pritzker required Illinoisans to begin wearing face masks in public beginning Friday .
The Art Institute lions and the Daley Center Picasso jumped the gun .
Crews Thursday morning began to install artisanal masks onto the downtown Chicago icons , a message to the rest of Chicago — and Illinois — that we can handle @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in our public look , for the sake of the common good .
The masks were the idea of Dimension Design , a Glenview firm that works mostly in the now-on-hiatus trade show and live event world .
Co-founder Jeremy Biewer and a friend had the idea of putting masks on Chicago sculptures to get the public health point across .
Designer Kelly Winter at Dimension did some mockups , the firm posted them to Facebook with a nod to Mayor Lori Lightfoot ’ s page — and , boom , a week @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a cherry picker and on a scissors lift strapping Chicago-flag-emblazoned protective gear onto civically significant artworks .
Scientists will note that neither Picasso ’ s sculpture nor those inanimate lions are likely to sneeze or cough or in any way spread the virus that has turned 2020 into a landmark year .
But that ’ s not the point .
“ Being able to promote safety and reduce the stigma of wearing these masks , it ’ s important , ” Biewer said .
“ Wearing the masks is going to save @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to mask up , it helps reduce the transmission of all of this.
” Read more here .
—Steve Johnson 7:50 a.m. : Another 3.8 million US workers file for unemployment ; coronavirus has put 30 million out of work More than 3.8 million laid-off workers applied for unemployment benefits last week as the U.S. economy slid further into a crisis that is becoming the most devastating since the 1930s .
Roughly 30.3 million people have now filed for jobless aid in the six weeks since the coronavirus outbreak began forcing millions of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their workforces .
That is more people than live in the New York and Chicago metropolitan areas combined , and it ’ s by far the worst string of layoffs on record .
It adds up to more than 1 in 6 American workers .
In Illinois , another 81,245 people filed initial claims for benefits in the week that ended April 18 , a drop of 21,691 from the previous week , the Labor Department said .
Since mid-March , almost 819,000 Illinois residents have applied for unemployment insurance benefits .
With @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , economists have forecast that the unemployment rate for April could go as high as 20 % .
That would be the highest rate since it reached 25 % during the Great Depression .
Read more here .
—Associated Press 7:10 a.m. : Complaints about businesses violating stay-home order drop ; Chicago offering webinars for businesses under modified stay-at-home order Chicago has received more than 2,700 complaints about businesses violating the state ’ s stay-at-home order , but the number of complaints has gone down in the last two weeks , according to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ April , the city was fielding almost 100 complaints a day , dropping to about 60 a day in the last two weeks , according to a news release from the mayor ’ s office .
As of Wednesday , the city ’ s Business Affairs and Consumer Protection Department had issued citations to 69 businesses , made 1,262 in-person checks on businesses and called more than 11,000 businesses about the stay-at-home order , according to the city .
Fines can run up to $ 10,000 .
As the state ’ s order @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also is hosting webinars , including one Thursday afternoon , “ to help businesses navigate ” the modified stay-at-home order , which lets a few types of business reopen entirely and others start offering online and pickup service , according to the release .
Chicago ’ s Business Affairs and Consumer Protection Department ’ s online seminars will help guide business owners through the state ’ s new regulations , including which businesses are now considered essential , how non-essential businesses can reopen and requirements to protect workers and customers , according a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ offering webinars for businesses regarding the city ’ s Microbusiness Recovery Grants , which will provide grants for businesses with four or fewer people in lower-income neighborhoods .
More information is available at the city ’ s website .
—Chicago Tribune staff On the eve of new Illinois requirements to wear face masks in public Friday , nonprofit Masks4Chi aims to distribute 350,000 free , reusable cloth masks throughout Chicago .
The nonprofit ’ s goal is to raise awareness about mask use in an effort to help flatten the coronavirus curve .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ will start the first stage of distribution with 25,000 masks .
The organization was started by Anand Sheth , owner of Mon Ami Jewelry and Mon Ami Realty , after a conversation with a friend , cardiologist Dr. Saumil Oza , who had started a similar organization in Jacksonville , Florida , Masks4Jax .
Sheth shared the idea with his team members , Emily Jodlowski and Stephanie Garcia Ochoa , who supported it .
In two weeks , Masks4Chi had partnered with a running list of local Chicago restaurants to give out the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ masks are being distributed through local restaurants and the food delivery app Chowbus , according to Sheth .
Two free , individually wrapped masks will be included in orders from participating restaurants , as will a flyer explaining Masks4Chi ’ s mission and initiative .
The nonprofit says there is no minimum purchase required to receive free masks .
6 a.m. : How the coronavirus school shutdown has changed PE class for Chicago-area students As a physical education teacher at Winston Campus Junior High in Palatine , Emmie Galan used to lead spirited @ @ @ @ @ @ @ school gym .
Now she ’ s hosting Instagram Live workout sessions for students from her living room .
While joining in the Instagram Live workouts is encouraged , Galan said they ’ re not mandatory , and her primary goal is to encourage her students to stay active and healthy during the sudden halting of their daily PE classes at the Palatine school .
Teachers and other experts agree that ensuring students of all ages stay physically active and embrace a healthy lifestyle is more important than ever during this uncertain and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ provision of the Illinois School Code that mandates fitness assessments for students was recently suspended because of the COVID-19 school closures .
But given Illinois ’ reputation as a national leader in PE and health instruction , teachers say even during school closures , the classes remain a priority .
Read more here .
—Karen Ann Cullotta Here are five things that happened Wednesday that you need to know : Here are five things that happened Tuesday that you need to know : Here are five things that happened Monday that you need @ @ @

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Paca Kujtim of Arlington Heights self-administers a COVID-19 test in his car at the Arlington International Racecourse on March 31, 2021 in Arlington Heights. Kujtim was getting testing as a precaution for upcoming travel. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
Illinois officials on Thursday announced 2,563 more known cases of COVID-19 and 141 additional deaths, bringing the total case count to 52,918 and the death toll to 2,355 statewide since the start of the outbreak.
The 141 fatalities reported in the previous 24 hours was the second-highest daily death toll, following 144 deaths reported Tuesday. The 2,563 new known cases were also the second-highest daily total.
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The new numbers were reported ahead of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s extended stay-at-home order taking effect. Starting Friday, the new directive requires all Illinois residents over age 2 to wear a face mask when they can’t maintain a 6-foot social distance in public. Here’s what else you need to know about the new face mask rules.
[ COVID-19 cases in Illinois by ZIP code: Search for your neighborhood ]
[ As the coronavirus spreads, the Tribune is tracking Illinois cases here ]
[ From closing schools to stay-at-home order, here's how Illinois' coronavirus response compares with other states ]
Here’s what’s happening Thursday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area and Illinois:
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7:36 p.m.: Branded masks turn coronavirus protection into commercial message: ‘It’s a face billboard.’
The requirement that Illinois residents wear facial coverings in public to prevent the spread of coronavirus has given rise to a new advertising vehicle — branded face masks promoting everything from fast food restaurants to sports teams.
All major sports leagues have begun producing officially-licensed team logo masks. Universal Music Group is making masks featuring artists from Willie Nelson to Justin Bieber. Warners Bros. has licensed a mask with the cast from the 1990s TV show, “Beverly Hills, 90210.”
Many of the proceeds of branded mask sales, at least initially, are helping to fund COVID-19 relief efforts. But turning personal protective equipment into an ad for a real estate agent may raise eyebrows, even in the new normal of a worldwide health crisis. Read more here. — Robert Channick
6:25 p.m.: Nearly 500 Southland residents have died of COVID-19
Following another week where more than 100 south and southwest suburban residents are confirmed to have died from COVID-19, the Southland has now lost nearly 500 people to the virus, according to a Southtown analysis.
At least 326 people in South Cook County and 153 people in Will County have died of complications from the virus since March 19, according to data from the Cook County medical examiner’s office and Will County public health officials.
The South Cook County patients who died — 170 men and 156 women — hailed from 48 different communities and range in age from a 19-year-old Riverdale man to a 108-year-old Evergreen Park nursing home resident.
The vast majority were elderly and many were residents of long-term care facilities.
About half of the South Cook patients who died were at least 75 years old and more than 80% were at least 65 years old, according to data from the Cook County medical examiner’s office.
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Only seven of the 326 people who have died of COVID-19 in South Cook County were under 40. Read more here. —Zak Koeske
5:42 p.m.: Frustration reigns amid efforts to get youths out of Cook County’s juvenile detention center before virus hits
Three weeks ago, McKisha Davis’ 17-year-old son sent her a text. “It feel like I have a short breath,” he wrote.
Davis, fearing the worst, asked where he was. “Are you feeling better?”
No response.
“I’m like, what’s going on? You got me worried, now you’re not responding,” she told the Tribune.
Her son was not sick with COVID-19, as she had dreaded. But he had been arrested — picked up on a gun charge and sent to Cook County’s Juvenile Temporary Detention Center.
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Thanks to expansive preemptive testing and other measures, the virus has not taken hold in the juvenile center as quickly or ferociously as it has at the Cook County Jail, where hundreds of adult detainees have fallen ill.
But advocates told the Tribune they have at times encountered roadblocks and confusion in trying to win release for juveniles — and feared that their young clients were being denied a fair chance to go home and shelter during the pandemic.
“They’re children, period. They’re kids, they make mistakes, their brain isn’t developed, they don’t understand the consequences,” said Cook County Public Defender Amy Campanelli. “The judges at juvenile court have released a lot of our kids, but there’s more work to do ... everybody should get a shot at a review. There shouldn’t be a technical reason not to do it."
On Thursday, after advocates voiced concerns and reporters raised questions, Chief Judge Timothy Evans’ office announced he would sign an order mandating that all juvenile detention reviews would have a chance to be heard in court. Read more here. —Megan Crepeau
5:38 p.m.: New Chicago data shows coronavirus continue to spread more slowly
The City of Chicago released data Thursday showing COVID-19 continues to spread more slowly through city residents, with the city’s public health commissioner saying modeling shows the city should be in much better shape to lessen restrictions in a month.
The commissioner, Dr. Allison Arwady, told reporters in a conference call Thursday that if restrictions had been lifted Friday, modeling forecasted an overwhelmed health care system within weeks.
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But she said that, with restrictions maintained, she expects a downward trajectory in new cases by the end of May. She said an Argonne National Laboratory model suggests hospitals would not be overwhelmed if restrictions were loosened June 1 — provided the city employs a plan crafted “carefully and thoughtfully” with “an appropriate level” of social distancing.
“We feel confident that (if such steps are followed) … we’ll be able to handle any increased infections that we do see in a way that won’t make us have to take major steps backward, even if we have to adjust moving forward,” she said.
The latest projections come amid increased testing, and as part of a broader release of raw data on Chicago’s data portal. Arwady said the goal of the new information was for residents and researchers to have the chance to dig into more data themselves.
In its latest analysis, the city says one key measure of a pandemic’s trajectory — so-called “doubling days” — continues to chart in the right direction. Doubling days are the number of days it takes a figure – such as new cases or deaths -- to double. The longer it takes, the better it is.
The latest calculations show new cases doubling every 15 days, compared to the 12-day calculation the city released two weeks ago.
Arwady acknowledged that — because of the boost in the number of tests — that figure alone could become an unreliable measure of the pandemic’s growth. After all, boosted testing is likely flagging more cases that previously went unreported or wouldn’t have been caught with earlier, stricter rules on who could be tested.
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But the city points to another “’doubling” metric — COVID-related deaths doubling every 16 days — as confirmation the trajectory remains similar.
To help researchers crunch figures, the city is putting out daily updates of case counts, testing figures, deaths, hospital capacity and broader data on those reporting flu-like symptoms to emergency rooms.
Maps are being updated three times a week for case counts, case rates and mortality by zip code, with more precise maps showing deaths by race and ethnicity. Once a week, the city said it plans to release epidemiological trajectory data, such as measurements of “doubling days.” —Joe Mahr
4:45 p.m.: Number of inmates at Chicago’s high-rise federal jail infected with COVID-19 jumps to 48
The number of inmates at Chicago’s high-rise federal jail who are positive for COVID-19 jumped to 48 on Thursday – almost seven times the number reported by prison officials just a day earlier.
The statistics were disclosed Thursday afternoon on the U.S. Bureau of Prisons web site, which has kept a running tally on the spread of coronavirus among the roughly 150,000 people in federal custody across the country. On Wednesday, there were only seven inmates at the Metropolitan Correctional Center who were listed as having tested positive for the virus, according to the prisons bureau.
In addition to the four dozen inmates who are now positive, the bureau reported that 20 MCC staff members have confirmed infections. So far there have been no fatalities.
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The spike in positive cases was the latest in a series of swings in the prisons bureau numbers that have so far gone unexplained by prisons bureau officials. The bureau did not respond to multiple requests from the Chicago Tribune this week for an explanation of how its coronavirus data is being tabulated.
One possible explanation for the increase is more testing. Last week, the prisons bureau announced in a news release that it was expanding testing around its system on asymptomatic inmates, since it’s now understood the virus can be quietly spread by an infected person who is not showing symptoms. The release did not state whether the MCC was among the facilities where the new testing machines would be used.
The lack of information has continued to raise alarms in Chicago’s legal community, where criminal defense attorneys have been trying — mostly in vain — to get clients released due to the disease’s presumed ability to spread quickly in the MCC’s notoriously cramped quarters.
"Clearly, the numbers on the BOP web site cannot be trusted,” John Murphy, the executive director of the Federal Defender Program in Chicago, told the Tribune earlier this week.
Nationwide, 33 federal inmates have died as of Thursday due to coronavirus complications, according to the BOP. Nearly 1,700 inmates have tested positive for the virus, including 426 who have now recovered. —Jason Meisner
3:55 p.m.: City officials say O’Hare’s massive $8.5 billion expansion project is moving ahead. But bleak outlook for air travel could force it to scale back.
Chicago’s aviation department insists the coronavirus pandemic won’t curtail its $8.5 billion expansion plan for O’Hare International Airport, but there are growing signs the city will have no choice but to reconsider the scope and timing of the project.
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With flights canceled, jets grounded and passenger traffic plummeting because of the coronavirus, the airlines — which are being counted on to help pay for the expansion — are facing their most severe economic crisis since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
“Never before has our airline, or our industry, faced such a significant challenge,” American Airlines Chairman and CEO Doug Parker said in a statement Thursday announcing first quarter earnings.
Other airports have already said they were considering postponing multi-billion dollar expansion plans because of the pandemic, including DFW Airport in Texas and San Diego’s international airport. And there are signs the architectural firm picked to design the $2.2 billion Global Terminal — the project’s centerpiece — has encountered turbulence on the project.
“If the airlines can’t afford this and don’t need terminals as large as they were, the city has a fiduciary duty to the airlines and to the community not to spend money they don’t have," said Henry Harteveldt, travel industry analyst and president of the Atmosphere Research Group. Read more here. —Mary Wisniewski, Blair Kamin and Lauren Zumbach
3:36 p.m.: Catholics to pray outside Holy Name Cathedral for reopening of churches
A group of Chicago-area Catholics will gather Friday at Holy Name Cathedral to pray for the reopening of churches in the Archdiocese of Chicago.
“We are desperately in need of spiritual leadership during this pandemic, and that is sorely lacking in the Archdiocese of Chicago,” Joseph Scheidler, one of the organizers of the prayer gathering and a prominent Catholic anti-abortion activist, said in a news release.
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In response to the coronavirus pandemic, Cardinal Blase Cupich announced last month that Mass would be suspended in all churches, the most rigid restrictions for the nation’s third-largest archdiocese since the 1918-19 Spanish flu epidemic.
The group, the newly formed St. Charles Borromeo Society, said they asked the archdiocese to ease restrictions so churches could reopen, but Cupich declined. The group said they would pray at Holy Name at noon every Friday until churches open.
A similar group in the Diocese of Joliet will hold a candlelight vigil at 7 p.m. Friday at St. Raymond Cathedral, according to the release. —Javonte Anderson
3:25 p.m.: ′It’s a blessing they are still together’: Married 70 years, couple behind popular newsstand dies of COVID-19, hours apart
As he struggled to breathe in a hospital room, Irv Kaage Jr. had one request.
“I said to him, ‘Dad, is there anything you need?’ And he just said, ‘Mama,’” recounted Kaage’s eldest son, Irv Kaage III. “I said, ‘I’m working on that, Dad. Give me just a little time.’”
Within hours, Irv Kaage Jr. and his wife, Muriel, married for 70 years, were together again, their hospital beds side by side, close enough so they could hold hands.
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For the next two days, they would remain together, as they had been for all of their adult lives.
Irv Kaage Jr., 92, was the first to pass away on April 26. Muriel, 90, followed just 36 hours later, on April 28.
“It’s a blessing they are still together,” Kaage III said. “If one of them had recovered from this, they would have died from a broken heart.”
The Kaages, longtime residents of Chicago’s Edison Park neighborhood and, for the last six years, residents of neighboring Park Ridge, died of complications from COVID-19, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office. Read more here. —Jennifer Johnson
3:02 p.m.: Lightfoot says city government worker layoffs a last resort, but preferable to a property tax hike
Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Thursday said she would only lay off or furlough city workers as a “last, last, last resort,” but that she would do so before considering raising property taxes.
Speaking at a news conference about reopening Chicago police detective areas, Lightfoot said she isn’t now considering following other cities in laying off workers or cutting back their hours or pay.
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“As somebody who worked in city government in days when there were mandatory furlough days and layoffs, that’s demoralizing to your workforce,” Lightfoot said.
But it’s too early to say for sure how badly the coronavirus shutdown will hurt the city’s bottom line.
“I can’t tell you yet what the full magnitude of the impact is on our 2020 budget, and we don’t start our formal process of looking ahead to 2021 until, really, the end of May, beginning of June,” she said.
As for when she might consider such cuts: “But I view layoffs and furloughs as a last, last, last resort. Well, last is raising property taxes.” —John Byrne
2:52 p.m.: Goodbye breakfast buffets and notepads, hello germ-zapping robots. How hotels are doubling down on hygiene — and what that means for your next stay.
The coronavirus crisis has not only sent the hotel industry reeling by cratering occupancy rates. It’s forcing hotels to ramp up their cleaning protocols and hygiene — things that will be more of a priority for consumers in a post-pandemic world, where safe is the new sexy.
“What would have been in the back of customers’ minds is now front and center,” said Phil Cordell, Hilton’s global head of new brand development.
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Hilton, Marriott and, as of Wednesday, Chicago-based Hyatt, have all announced plans for updated cleaning standards and other steps aimed at protecting the health of guests and staff at thousands of properties around the world. Home-rental companies like Airbnb have made similar moves.
Demand for hotel rooms has tanked during the pandemic. Among the U.S. hotels that are still open, about three out of four rooms are vacant, according to data released Thursday by the hospitality research company STR. In Chicago’s central business district, the occupancy rate is just shy of 14%.
When people start staying in hotels again, they’ll notice some changes as new hygiene measures get rolled out in the coming weeks and months.
Expect less furniture to make way for more social distancing in lobbies and other public areas. Hand sanitizing stations will be highly visible. So will housekeepers, whose role moves from behind-the-scenes to center stage as they frequently and conspicuously wipe down railings, elevator buttons and door handles with hospital-grade disinfectants. Read more here. —Lori Rackl
2:40 p.m.: 141 fatalities reported in previous 24 hours is second-highest daily death toll
Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Thursday that the state has met his goal of conducting at least 10,000 tests daily for the new coronavirus each day since first surpassing that benchmark last week.
Officials on Thursday announced 2,563 more known cases of COVID-19 and 141 additional deaths, bringing the total case county to 52,918 and the death toll to 2,355 statewide since the start of the outbreak.
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The 141 fatalities reported in the previous 24 hours was the second-highest daily death toll, following 144 deaths reported Tuesday. The 2,563 new known cases were also the second-highest daily total.
Officials have attributed the growth in known cases in part to more robust testing. More than 13,000 tests were conducted in the preceding 24 hours.
Pritzker also publicized the opening of two more state-run drive-thru testing sites, in Waukegan and East St. Louis, that will open next week. —Dan Petrella
2:34 p.m.: Oprah Winfrey will give commencement address at Chicago Public Schools’ virtual graduation ceremony
For the first time, Chicago Public Schools will host a virtual, citywide graduation ceremony — and one of Chicago’s all-time biggest names will give the commencement address.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Thursday that Oprah Winfrey will be the speaker at the virtual ceremony, which will be held in mid-June.
“We are thrilled and honored to have the one-and-only Oprah Winfrey joining us for this incredible moment with Chicago’s high school seniors,” said Lightfoot. “The times we are living in are historic and stunning, forcing us all to take a deep look at who we are as a people and our place in the world. No one knows this better than Oprah, and I join all of Chicago in looking forward to hearing the wisdom she’ll be sharing with our incredible young people as they take this unforgettable next step on their life’s journey.”
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Traditional graduation ceremonies have been canceled because of the school shutdown prompted by the coronavirus. Schools will remain closed at least through the end of the current school year, which for CPS is June 18. Read more here. —Hannah Leone
2:23 p.m.: Lightfoot: No immediate plans to follow NYC in overnight public transportation shutdown
Mayor Lori Lightfoot says she has no immediate plans to follow New York City’s lead in shutting down public transportation overnight to deep clean it.
“Public transportation is really, really important,” Lightfoot said. Not everyone has the resources to call a cab or rideshare to get to work, she said.
Later, Gov. J.B. Pritzker said he thought a CTA scrub was “a good idea.”
“I would say that that’s something that the mayor of the city of Chicago certainly should lead,” Pritzker said. "We want to make sure that people are safe taking mass transit.”
He said he knows cleaning is taking place but isn’t sure of the schedule. —John Byrne and Dan Petrella
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2:09 p.m.: Illinois GOP congressmen ask Pritzker to begin reopening state’s economy
The five Republicans in Illinois’ 18-member U.S. House delegation are asking Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker for a phased plan to reopen the state’s economy, saying “it is unreasonable and untenable to continue on this course for the duration of the pandemic.”
“The fact is, communities across the state are desperate for a plan to navigate the reopening of business in a responsible, reasonable manner,” the congressmen wrote in a letter to Pritzker on Thursday.
“There is a strong desire among the people we represent to move forward with a plan focusing on balancing our health and our economy. It should not be an either/or proposition,” the congressmen said.
The letter, signed by Reps. John Shimkus of Collinsville, Adam Kinzinger of Channahon, Rodney Davis of Taylorville, Mike Bost of Murphysboro and Darin LaHood of Peoria, appears to have come a day after they spoke to Pritzker by phone. The letter references matters “discussed on the call yesterday.”
The letter by the five Republicans represents yet another effort within the state’s minority political party to push Pritzker into a more widespread opening of Illinois’ economy than the Democratic governor has indicated he will allow. Read more here. —Rick Pearson
1:55 p.m.: New Illinois rules about wearing a face mask in public start May 1. Here’s everything to know.
Beginning Friday, all Illinois residents over age 2 must wear a face mask when they can’t maintain a 6-foot social distance in public. Studies show that the coronavirus can spread between people interacting in close proximity, including people who are not showing symptoms.
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The Tribune has compiled resources below on what fabrics are best for homemade masks, how to make your own face mask, and who is making and donating them in the Chicago area. Read more here.
1:53 p.m.: Steppenwolf Theatre cancels live shows until October, taps its famed ensemble for online productions
Chicago’s famed Steppenwolf Theatre on Halsted Street has canceled productions on its stages further out than most of its peers. The theater, closed by the pandemic since March, now will stay dark until at least mid-October for “Good Night, and Good Luck," a new play adapted from the 2005 George Clooney movie. First preview is planned for Oct. 22.
Productions planned for this spring and summer will be staged at a later date, the theater announced Thursday. In their place, Steppenwolf plans the draw on its famous ensemble for some streaming productions. An upcoming “virtual reading” of Yasen Peyankov’s adaptation of “The Seagull" will feature ensemble members Ian Barford, James Vincent Meredith, Amy Morton and others. In mid-June, Austin Pendleton will direct a starry cast of more than 30 ensemble members including John Malkovich, Joan Allen, Laurie Metcalf and William Petersen. Both will available only to Steppenwolf members, or subscribers. Read more here. —Chris Jones
1:24 p.m.: 4th CTA employee dies from coronavirus
Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Thursday that a fourth Chicago Transit Authority employee died from complications due to coronavirus on Wednesday. —John Byrne
1:18 p.m.: Here are some Chicago-area mask giveaways to prepare for Illinois order that starts Friday
Starting Friday, Illinois residents older than age 2 will be required to wear masks or face coverings in public, according to an order from Gov. J.B. Pritzker.
The directive requires facial coverings when social distancing is not possible, such as in grocery stores.
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With surgical masks in short supply, state residents are encouraged to don fabric masks or homemade face coverings. Many people have been making and distributing them, and a wide variety of cloth masks are available online, including through some local retailers.
As Chicago-area residents prepare for the order, here are some places to pick up a free mask.
1 p.m.: Buttermilk restaurants, movie theater file class-action suit against insurance company that denied COVID-19 claims
The owners of the Buttermilk restaurants in Naperville and Geneva and a movie theater in Woodridge have filed a federal class action lawsuit charging their insurance company wrongly denied claims for lost income due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Filed in the eastern division of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, the suit says the companies purchased the insurance from Wisconsin-based Society Insurance Inc. to cover their losses and expenses in situations in which their businesses are forced to close, Naperville attorney David Fish said. Read more here. —Erin Hegarty
12:27 p.m.: Rural Illinois church files lawsuit accusing Gov. J.B. Pritzker of relegating people of faith to ‘second-class citizenship’ by shuttering churches
Resistance to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s extension of his statewide stay-at-home order grew Thursday, with a church in northwest Illinois filing a federal lawsuit contending that Pritzker’s executive actions have demonstrated “illegal and discriminatory hostility to religious practice, churches, and people of faith.”
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of the Beloved Church, a roughly 80-person congregation in the town of Lena, by the Thomas More Society, a conservative public interest law firm in Chicago. Stephen Cassell, the church’s pastor, is listed as a co-plaintiff with the church.
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The complaint takes issue with how Pritzker’s stay-home order deemed worship spaces nonessential, and alleges that Pritzker and other law enforcement and public health officials have “intentionally denigrated Illinois churches and pastors and people of faith by relegating them to second-class citizenship.” Read more here. —Antonia Ayres-Brown
12:23 p.m.: Amid an entertainment world shut down by coronavirus, The Hideout is still working to make a human connection
Longtime followers of the Hideout know pushing forward is the modus operandi of the venue. Being first is too. Whether it was closing down operations well before the state’s shelter-in-place order or setting up a GoFundMe for employees, the Hideout has never been afraid of making challenging, progressive decisions in the face of adversity. I
t comes as no surprise then that rather than simply go silent, the Hideout has taken its beloved IRL bar and performance venue experience online. Read more here. —Britt Julious
Noon: Feeling hopeless? Worried? Chicago-area pandemic survey shows you’re not alone
The humans of Chicagoland are lonely and feeling a little hopeless right now, according to a new survey meant to gauge the well-being of Americans during the coronavirus pandemic.
About 36% of respondents in Chicago’s metropolitan area reported that they felt “hopeless about the future” at least once in the last week, and 43% reported that they felt lonely at least one day. More than a third reported at least one day of feeling depressed.
With their lives disrupted by COVID-19, many are worried about jobs too. When the surveyors asked how likely respondents felt that it was that they would have a job in 30 days, 42% in the Chicago area reported that it was “not too likely” or “not likely at all.”
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About 23% of local residents surveyed said that at some time in the past 30 days, they had run out of food and had no money to buy more. And 29% of Chicago-area residents reported that they worried that they didn’t have enough food to last before they’d have money to spend. Reports of food insecurity were similar nationally. Read more here. —Jennifer Smith Richards
11:34 a.m.: Coronavirus pandemic leaves Chicago-area seminarians waiting to fulfill dream of becoming priests, ministers
As American colleges and churches abruptly closed last month because of the pandemic, seminaries followed suit, forcing aspiring religious leaders attending seminaries to wait before fulfilling their ambitions of becoming priests or pastors. Chicago historically has had more seminaries than any other metro area in the country, according to the Encyclopedia of Chicago, so the shutdowns have hit hard here.
In the Archdiocese of Chicago, Mundelein Seminary has indefinitely postponed the ordination for priesthood candidates from the archdiocese.
The decision to postpone ordinations is up to each individual diocese. The Joliet Diocese has also delayed its ordinations. The Diocese of Gary, however, will proceed with a private ordination for its one new priest. The ordination will comply with all social distancing guidelines, a diocese spokesman said. Read more here. —Javonte Anderson
9:53 a.m.: Toilet paper: Why is it still so hard to find? When will stores have rolls?
Paper goods giant Georgia-Pacific is cranking out 1.5 million more rolls of toilet paper a day than two months ago, but George Bugg still can’t find it on the shelves of the Decatur, Georgia, stores where he shops.
Bugg wants to know: What gives? Nearly two months into new shopping habits brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, why haven’t manufacturers caught up to demand for toilet paper and paper towels?
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“I didn’t think we are using much more than usual. But, in the last month, I haven’t been able to find it at Sam’s. I went to Kroger the next day, the paper towel rack was empty. There were a few off-brand packs of toilet paper, and people were picking up those,” said Bugg.
It’s the same across much of the nation. In response, manufacturers have restarted idled tissue-making machines, increased efficiency in their 24-hour, seven-day operations, and shipped more paper faster. But they haven’t caught up to panicked consumer buying and societal and business changes that have altered American loo-ology. The situation leaves business marketeers unable to predict when the TP shortage might end. Read more here. —The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
9:24 a.m.: ‘A severe toll’: Coronavirus pushes US consumer spending down 7.5%, the sharpest drop on record
U.S. consumer spending plunged 7.5% in March, reflecting the growing impact of the coronavirus pandemic as Americans complied with stay-at-home orders.
The Commerce Department said that the spending decline was the sharpest monthly drop on records that go back to 1959, exceeding the previous record, a decline of 2.1% in January 1987.
Personal incomes also fell sharply last month, declining by 2% with wages and salaries, the largest part of incomes, falling by 3.1% as millions of Americans started getting lay-off notices.
The report said that the country experienced big declines as “consumers canceled, restricted or redirected their spending.” Read more here. —Associated Press
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8:48 a.m.: Mask up: Art Institute lions, Daley Center Picasso get coronavirus face coverings
Gov. J.B. Pritzker required Illinoisans to begin wearing face masks in public beginning Friday. The Art Institute lions and the Daley Center Picasso jumped the gun.
Crews Thursday morning began to install artisanal masks onto the downtown Chicago icons, a message to the rest of Chicago — and Illinois — that we can handle a little sacrifice, a little disruption in our public look, for the sake of the common good.
The masks were the idea of Dimension Design, a Glenview firm that works mostly in the now-on-hiatus trade show and live event world.
Co-founder Jeremy Biewer and a friend had the idea of putting masks on Chicago sculptures to get the public health point across. Designer Kelly Winter at Dimension did some mockups, the firm posted them to Facebook with a nod to Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s page — and, boom, a week or so later, workers were up in a cherry picker and on a scissors lift strapping Chicago-flag-emblazoned protective gear onto civically significant artworks.
Scientists will note that neither Picasso’s sculpture nor those inanimate lions are likely to sneeze or cough or in any way spread the virus that has turned 2020 into a landmark year. But that’s not the point.
“Being able to promote safety and reduce the stigma of wearing these masks, it’s important,” Biewer said. “Wearing the masks is going to save lives. If we can get Chicago to mask up, it helps reduce the transmission of all of this.” Read more here. —Steve Johnson
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7:50 a.m.: Another 3.8 million US workers file for unemployment; coronavirus has put 30 million out of work
More than 3.8 million laid-off workers applied for unemployment benefits last week as the U.S. economy slid further into a crisis that is becoming the most devastating since the 1930s.
Roughly 30.3 million people have now filed for jobless aid in the six weeks since the coronavirus outbreak began forcing millions of employers to close their doors and slash their workforces. That is more people than live in the New York and Chicago metropolitan areas combined, and it’s by far the worst string of layoffs on record. It adds up to more than 1 in 6 American workers.
In Illinois, another 81,245 people filed initial claims for benefits in the week that ended April 18, a drop of 21,691 from the previous week, the Labor Department said. Since mid-March, almost 819,000 Illinois residents have applied for unemployment insurance benefits.
With more employers cutting payrolls to save money, economists have forecast that the unemployment rate for April could go as high as 20%. That would be the highest rate since it reached 25% during the Great Depression. Read more here. —Associated Press
7:10 a.m.: Complaints about businesses violating stay-home order drop; Chicago offering webinars for businesses under modified stay-at-home order
Chicago has received more than 2,700 complaints about businesses violating the state’s stay-at-home order, but the number of complaints has gone down in the last two weeks, according to the city.
At the beginning of April, the city was fielding almost 100 complaints a day, dropping to about 60 a day in the last two weeks, according to a news release from the mayor’s office. As of Wednesday, the city’s Business Affairs and Consumer Protection Department had issued citations to 69 businesses, made 1,262 in-person checks on businesses and called more than 11,000 businesses about the stay-at-home order, according to the city. Fines can run up to $10,000.
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As the state’s order changes effective Friday, the city of also is hosting webinars, including one Thursday afternoon, “to help businesses navigate” the modified stay-at-home order, which lets a few types of business reopen entirely and others start offering online and pickup service, according to the release.
Chicago’s Business Affairs and Consumer Protection Department’s online seminars will help guide business owners through the state’s new regulations, including which businesses are now considered essential, how non-essential businesses can reopen and requirements to protect workers and customers, according a news release.
The city also is offering webinars for businesses regarding the city’s Microbusiness Recovery Grants, which will provide grants for businesses with four or fewer people in lower-income neighborhoods.
More information is available at the city’s website. —Chicago Tribune staff
6:30 a.m.: Nonprofit’s goal: 350,000 free masks for Chicagoans
On the eve of new Illinois requirements to wear face masks in public Friday, nonprofit Masks4Chi aims to distribute 350,000 free, reusable cloth masks throughout Chicago.
The nonprofit’s goal is to raise awareness about mask use in an effort to help flatten the coronavirus curve. From Thursday to May 3, Masks4Chi will start the first stage of distribution with 25,000 masks.
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The organization was started by Anand Sheth, owner of Mon Ami Jewelry and Mon Ami Realty, after a conversation with a friend, cardiologist Dr. Saumil Oza, who had started a similar organization in Jacksonville, Florida, Masks4Jax. Sheth shared the idea with his team members, Emily Jodlowski and Stephanie Garcia Ochoa, who supported it.
In two weeks, Masks4Chi had partnered with a running list of local Chicago restaurants to give out the first 25,000 masks.
The first 25,000 masks are being distributed through local restaurants and the food delivery app Chowbus, according to Sheth.
Two free, individually wrapped masks will be included in orders from participating restaurants, as will a flyer explaining Masks4Chi’s mission and initiative. The nonprofit says there is no minimum purchase required to receive free masks.
Read more here. —Hannah Herrera Greenspan
6 a.m.: How the coronavirus school shutdown has changed PE class for Chicago-area students
As a physical education teacher at Winston Campus Junior High in Palatine, Emmie Galan used to lead spirited volleyball matches and handball games in the school gym. Now she’s hosting Instagram Live workout sessions for students from her living room.
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While joining in the Instagram Live workouts is encouraged, Galan said they’re not mandatory, and her primary goal is to encourage her students to stay active and healthy during the sudden halting of their daily PE classes at the Palatine school.
Teachers and other experts agree that ensuring students of all ages stay physically active and embrace a healthy lifestyle is more important than ever during this uncertain and anxious time in their lives.
A provision of the Illinois School Code that mandates fitness assessments for students was recently suspended because of the COVID-19 school closures. But given Illinois’ reputation as a national leader in PE and health instruction, teachers say even during school closures, the classes remain a priority. Read more here. —Karen Ann Cullotta
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chicagotribune--2020-05-03--Man killed in South Side shooting half an hour after man injured in shooting block away, police say

The man was found with multiple gunshot wounds to the chest , back and legs about 11 p.m. in the @ @ @ @ @ Avenue in the Brainerd neighborhood , police said .
He was taken to Advocate Christ @ @ @ @ @ was pronounced dead .

A 27-year-old man was fatally shot Saturday night on the front steps of a South Side home, according to Chicago police.
The man was found with multiple gunshot wounds to the chest, back and legs about 11 p.m. in the 9200 block of South Eggleston Avenue in the Brainerd neighborhood, police said. The victim, Khalil T. Porter was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 12:02 a.m. Sunday, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office.
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There were no witnesses to the shooting, police said. No arrests had been made and the case was under investigation.
About 30 minutes earlier, a 19-year-old man was shot multiple times at 10:35 p.m. in the 9200 block of South Normal Avenue, which is a block west from where the fatal shooting took place.
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The 19-year-old was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in good condition, police said. He was uncooperative with police, and no arrests had been made in the case.
It was unknown if the two shootings were related, according to Officer Ronald Westbrooks, a police spokesman.
Check back for updates.
pfry@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @paigexfry


chicagotribune--2020-05-03--Man dies of self-inflicted stab wounds after hours-long SWAT standoff on CTA tracks near 79th Street

Officers used the Taser on the man shortly after 8 p.m. , and he was taken to the University of @ @ @ @ @ he was in custody , according to police .

A five-hour long standoff with a distraught young man standing on the CTA train tracks brandishing a knife ended with police using a Taser on the man, who was then taken into custody at a hospital on Saturday night.
The man, 27, later died at the hospital of self-inflicted stab wounds, according to Chicago police.
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The emergency, which began shortly after 3 p.m., and ended just after 8 p.m., caused "major'' delays to Red Line service and snarled traffic on the Dan Ryan Expressway as first responders worked to resolve the issue.
Officers used the Taser on the man shortly after 8 p.m., and he was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was in custody, according to police.
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The man was pronounced dead at 9:49 p.m., police said. An autopsy will determine his official cause and manner of death.
The ordeal began about 3 p.m. near 79th Street on the tracks, when the Chicago police special weapons and tactics officers were dispatched for the male armed with a knife.
Earlier, as of about 7:30 p.m., police had still been trying to negotiate with the man.
"The SWAT team is doing what they have to do,’’ said Officer Michelle Tannehill, a police spokeswoman earlier.
The man, in his 20s or 30s, was standing on the tracks, a “couple feet,’’ from the platform, Tannehill said.
"Hopefully it ends peacefully and no one gets hurt,'' Spicuzza said.
The incident caused the CTA to halt service in that area and Illinois State Police to shut down traffic, as troopers helped with the investigation.
As of 9:40 p.m. all southbound and northbound lanes were re-opened and troopers have left the scene, ISP said in a statement.
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In an earlier statement, ISP said: “All northbound and southbound lanes of the Ryan at 79th Street were closed while we assist the Chicago Police Department with the ongoing incident with the ‘pedestrian.’''
Red Line service was temporarily suspended between the 95th and Garfield stations and trains were only operating between Howard and Garfield, the CTA said in an earlier alert.
Customers were urged to either take one of the shuttle buses, which were made available, or the Green Line. Nearby bus routes were also available, such as the #29, the CTA said.
Check back for details.
rsobol@chicagotribune.com
pfry@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-05-02--Dr. Allison Arwady issues warm weather COVID-19 warning: ‘I am a little worried ... it’s a beautiful

Dr. Allison Arwady issues warm weather COVID-19 warning: ‘I am a little worried ... it’s a beautiful  day and people are out’

“ I ’ m worried because we need to get on the other side of this curve , ” Arwady @ @ @ @ @ re not going to see that peak until sometime in May , and the more @ @ @ @ @ the more we have people out and about and not abiding by the stay-at-home order @ @ @ @ @ gets pushed .

Paca Kujtim of Arlington Heights self-administers a COVID-19 test in his car at the Arlington International Racecourse on March 31, 2021 in Arlington Heights. Kujtim was getting testing as a precaution for upcoming travel. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
Chicago’s top health official said Saturday she worries people eager to get outdoors and enjoy the pleasant weather this weekend could counteract the progress against the COVID-19 pandemic made through social distancing efforts.
“We’ve been making progress in terms of seeing that curve flattening, but we are not seeing it decreasing,” Dr. Allison Arwady said Saturday morning on her daily Facebook live-streaming event. “We’re close there, but there was a reason to extend the stay-at-home order. And I am a little worried because I was out today ... it’s a beautiful day and people are out.”
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[ Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Here's the latest on COVID-19 ]
As of Saturday morning, the city reported a total of 22,744 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 962 deaths, Arwady said. Though the rate of infection has slowed, she cautioned the state has not yet seen its peak and will need to keep restrictions in place for some time.
The city’s new numbers represent an increase of 1,238 new diagnoses and 30 additional deaths since Friday, Arwady said. The figures have risen, in part, as more testing becomes available, Arwady said. Fatal cases continue to disproportionately affect minority and elderly communities.
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Dr. Allison Arwady, director of the Chicago Department of Public Health, speaks during a news conference at City Hall in Chicago on March 26, 2020. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
Another measure the city tracks was also going the wrong direction: cellphone data, which shows the movement of residents, indicates people have been more active outside their homes in the last 24 hours. That could be tied to weather, which brought sunshine Friday and was expected to reach 75 degrees Saturday.
Wearing a pastel-colored sweater that she noted was suited for springtime, Arwady said people who venture outside should only do so with household members and should keep their distance from others. The cellphone data also began to show more activity Friday when protesters gathered in downtown Chicago, calling on the governor to reopen more of the state’s economy.
“I’m worried because we need to get on the other side of this curve,” Arwady said. “We’re not going to see that peak until sometime in May, and the more we have new infections, the more we have people out and about and not abiding by the stay-at-home order, the longer that peak gets pushed.
“The biggest factor in all of this is how many new infections we have. And how many new infections we have is directly caused by how many interactions people are having with each other," she said.
echerney@chicagotribune.com


Corrections and clarifications

Publishing information quickly and accurately is a central part of the Chicago Tribune ’ s news responsibility and a value @ @ @ @ @ .
Our editorial code of principles governs professional behavior and journalism standards .
Everyone in @ @ @ @ @ live up to this code of conduct .
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· Eric Zorn’s column in Sunday’s opinion section misstated the estimated average number of road tests that the Illinois secretary of state administers during normal times. The correct estimated number is 110,000 tests per month.
The Tribune regrets the error.
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Publishing information quickly and accurately is a central part of the Chicago Tribune’s news responsibility and a value shared in all our publications. Our editorial code of principles governs professional behavior and journalism standards. Everyone in our newsroom must agree to live up to this code of conduct. Download the file.
To report an error, fill out this form.


chicagotribune--2020-05-03--Man shot to death in Aurora Sunday morning

About five minutes later , Aurora ’ s 911 Center received a call from an area hospital that Ronelle Dortch @ @ @ @ @ Aurora , had arrived at the emergency room with a gunshot wound and was in @ @ @ @ @ to the hospital and attempted to gather more information about the shooting , but Dortch @ @ @ @ @ police said .

An Aurora man was shot to death on the city’s far southeast side early Sunday morning, police said.
Just before 4 a.m., officers were dispatched after police received multiple reports of shots fired in the 2700 block of Village Green Drive.
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About five minutes later, Aurora’s 911 Center received a call from an area hospital that Ronelle Dortch Jr., 22, of Aurora, had arrived at the emergency room with a gunshot wound and was in critical condition. Officers responded to the hospital and attempted to gather more information about the shooting, but Dortch died at the hospital, police said.
Detectives from Aurora Police’s Bureau of Investigations responded to the scene of the shooting and began interviewing potential witnesses, canvassing the area and investigating the specific circumstances of the incident, police said.
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Evidence technicians from Aurora Police’s Evidence Unit also responded to the scene to identify and collect forensic evidence from the shooting, officials said.
Anyone with information on the shooting should call Aurora Police’s Investigations Division at 630-256-5500, or Aurora Area Crime Stoppers at 630-892-1000 to report information regarding the incident anonymously.
Crime Stoppers offers cash rewards up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest of felony crime offenders and the capture of felony fugitives.


chicagotribune--2020-05-03--At least 21 shot, 2 fatally, across Chicago from Saturday night into Sunday morning, including 5 tee

At least 21 shot, 2 fatally, across Chicago from Saturday night into Sunday morning, including 5 teens shot at West Side party

At least one suspect was believed to have been riding in a gray four-door vehicle , police said .
Police @ @ @ @ @ surveillance to see if that could shed more light on the shooting .
There was @ @ @ @ @ camera at the site of the shooting .

More than 20 people were shot Saturday night into Sunday morning across Chicago, two of them fatally, as temperatures hit 70 degrees and police tried to break up house parties, including an outdoor party where five teenagers were shot on the West Side early Sunday, according to police.
The shootings come after overall crime in Chicago plummeted drastically during the first full month that Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s stay-at-home order was in effect, according to city crime data.
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But even while Chicago police made 1,406 arrests from March 22 to April 23, compared with 4,985 during the same period a year earlier, shootings continue to trend upward. During a 28-day period through April 26, the city recorded 192 shootings, 16 more than the same period in 2019, police statistics show.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot warned residents Saturday that continued house parties could extend stay-at-home-orders and social distancing rules. Lightfoot said the Chicago Police Department broke up several house parties across the city Friday night.
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Five teens suffered gunshot wounds to the legs during a large outdoor gathering Sunday morning. The attack occurred about 3:30 a.m. in the 3700 block of West 13th Street when a shooter in a gray four-door sedan fired shots at the group, according to police. All victims, the youngest 15 years old, were transported to local hospitals and listed in fair condition. No one was in custody.
Police said officers responded to a ShotSpotter alert in the vicinity of Roosevelt Road and Lawndale Avenue and found the victims there. At least one officer applied a tourniquet and clotting gauze to two of the victims, police said.
At least one suspect was believed to have been riding in a gray four-door vehicle, police said. Police scoured the area for video surveillance to see if that could shed more light on the shooting. There was at least one city surveillance camera at the site of the shooting.
In one attack that left a man dead, two men were shot by a male attacker wearing all black in the 5200 block of South Troy Avenue about 1 a.m. Sunday, according to police. One man, 35, was shot throughout the body and pronounced dead at Mount Sinai Hospital. The other, 36, was taken to Mount Sinai in good condition.
Earlier, a 27-year-old man was found with multiple gunshot wounds in front of a residence in the 9200 block of South Eggleston Avenue about 11 p.m. Saturday. He was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead, police said.
At least 13 other people, ranging in age from 19 to 36, were shot in attacks overnight on the West and South sides, according to police. No one was reported in custody in connection with any of the attacks.
Among the other shootings, according to police:
A 35-year-old man went in a private vehicle to Holy Cross Hospital with two gunshot wounds to the leg and was subsequently taken to Mount Sinai, where he was in critical condition. The attack occurred in the 6700 block of South Loomis Street about 3 a.m.
A 32-year-old man was found in the 2100 block of West 23rd Street with gunshot wounds to the arm, abdomen and leg about 3 a.m. Sunday, police said. He was transported to Mount Sinai in critical condition.
In an attack about midnight Saturday, a 22-year-old man was a passenger in a vehicle driving near North Avenue on Lake Shore Drive when he was shot in the stomach by someone who hasn’t been identified. The man was taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center in critical condition.
About 10 p.m. Saturday, a 32-year-old man was standing in an alley in the 3700 block of South Damen Avenue when he heard shots and suffered gunshot wounds to both legs. The man was driven to Stroger Hospital and was in serious condition, police said.
About 3 a.m., a 20-year-old man suffered a gunshot to the hip after exiting a gas station in the 4400 block of West Roosevelt Road. The man was driven to Rush University Medical Center by a friend, and transferred to Stroger Hospital in good condition.
A 23-year-old man was driving near the 3200 block of West Douglas Boulevard about midnight Saturday when someone in a dark vehicle fired shots that hit him in the leg and arm. The man drove himself to St. Anthony Hospital, where he was in fair condition.
About 11:45 p.m. Saturday, a 26-year-old woman in the back seat of a vehicle in the 1200 block of South Christiana Avenue heard shots and felt pain. She went in a private vehicle to Mount Sinai Hospital, where she was in good condition.
About 11:30 p.m., a 33-year-old woman was standing outside in the 6700 block of South Ada Street with a group of people when someone fired shots that hit her in the chest and wrist, according to police. She was driven by a friend to St. Bernard Hospital and transferred to Stroger, where she was in fair condition.
A 19-year-old man was shot in the index finger near 11800 South Yale Avenue about 11 p.m., according to police. The man was taken to Roseland Hospital in good condition.
A 19-year-old man was shot multiple times near 9200 South Normal Avenue about 10:30 p.m. and was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in good condition, according to police.
A 18-year-old man accidentally shot himself in the groin with a handgun when he removed the gun from his waistband, according to police. The shooting occurred in the 5000 block of South Kostner Avenue about 10 p.m. He was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in good condition.
A 31-year-old man was shot in the calf as he stood on the sidewalk in the 1100 block of South Laflin Avenue about 10 p.m. Saturday, according to police. He was taken to Stroger Hospital in good condition.
About 8:35 p.m., a 36-year-old woman was shot while driving in the 1800 block of North Sawyer Avenue, according to police. A gray sedan pulled up next to her and a man who was a passenger in the car shot at her. The woman suffered a gunshot wound to the left index finger and went in a private vehicle to Norwegian-American Hospital, where she was in good condition.
Chicago Tribune’s Jeremy Gorner and Paige Fry contributed.
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jvillagomez@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @JessicaVillag


chicagotribune--2020-05-03--Northwest Illinois church holds services days after filing lawsuit against Gov. J.B. Pritzker over s

Northwest Illinois church holds services days after filing lawsuit against Gov. J.B. Pritzker over stay-at-home order

The governor has said large gatherings pose a public health risk to communities in which they occur , and encourages @ @ @ @ @ that services be canceled or held online during the stay-at-home order .
A revision late @ @ @ @ @ s order , after the lawsuit was filed , added “ free exercise of religion @ @ @ @ @ activity to the order , but limits religious gatherings to 10 people or fewer , @ @ @ @ @ all gatherings laid out in the order .

A rural Illinois church held services Sunday just days after it filed a federal lawsuit against Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s stay-at-home order, contending his executive actions were discriminatory against religious practices, according to a spokesman for the church’s attorneys and an attorney for the local police chief.
But a federal judge Sunday ruled the stay-at-home order constitutional.
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In the 37-page decision, U.S. District Court Judge John Z. Lee said the court is mindful that religious activities permitted by the order are “imperfect substitutes" for in-person services during which the 80-member church can sing and pray together.
“Still, given the continuing threat posed by COVID-19, the Order preserves relatively robust avenues for praise, prayer and fellowship and passes constitutional muster,” Lee wrote.
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Until testing signals it’s safe to return to worshipping in large groups, Lee wrote, the plaintiffs, "as Christians, can take comfort in the promise of Matthew 18:20 — ‘For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.’ ”
The Beloved Church, in the northwest Illinois town of Lena in Stephenson County, announced in a news release it would provide masks and hand sanitizer to worshippers, and families would be situated 6 feet apart to respect social distancing recommendations by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The service had “about the same number for average attendance,” with about 60 to 80 people, “with social distancing,” said Tom Ciesielka, a spokesman for the Thomas More Society, a Chicago-based conservative public interest law firm that filed the lawsuit on the church’s behalf. He called the service “uneventful.”
Lena police Chief Steve Schaible, a defendant in the lawsuit, referred all inquiries to his attorney, Dominick Lanzito. Lanzito said it was his understanding there was no enforcement action of the executive order taken at Sunday’s service.
The governor said the church should not have held services Sunday.
“They shouldn’t have been having services at all, unless they were in groups of 10 or less,” Pritzker said.
“Again, this is temporary," he said. “People need to understand that, especially faith leaders, that keeping your parishioners safe is the most important thing that you can do.”
The service came three days after the Thomas More Society filed the lawsuit. The suit alleged Pritzker, law enforcement and public health officials have “intentionally denigrated Illinois churches and pastors and people of faith by relegating them to second-class citizenship.”
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The governor has said large gatherings pose a public health risk to communities in which they occur, and encourages parishioners across Illinois to request that services be canceled or held online during the stay-at-home order. A revision late Thursday in the governor’s order, after the lawsuit was filed, added “free exercise of religion” as a permitted essential activity to the order, but limits religious gatherings to 10 people or fewer, in line with limits on all gatherings laid out in the order.
Chicago Tribune’s Patrick M. O’Connell and Morgan Greene contributed.


chicagotribune--2020-05-03--COVID-19 cases in Illinois by ZIP code: Search for your neighborhood

Search below by street address , ZIP code or city , then click on the map to see the number @ @ @ @ @ state is not providing data for any ZIP code with five cases or fewer .

Note: With Chicago and Illinois moving into phase 5, the Tribune is no longer updating this data. If the state moves back into bridge phase, the Tribune we reassess. Daily metrics on COVID-19, like cases, deaths and hospitalizations, can be found here. And Daily metrics on the vaccination effort can be found here. More on where the coronavirus stands nationally and around the world can be found here.
Illinois releases the number of positive COVID-19 cases by ZIP code daily. The map below shows the cumulative cases for each area as well as other analysis of the data.
• Check out the Tribune’s coronavirus coverage.
• Tracking daily Illinois coronavirus deaths, cases and tests.
Search below by street address, ZIP code or city, then click on the map to see the number of confirmed and probable cases. The state is not providing data for any ZIP code with five cases or fewer.
Data as of June 10.
The map search tool above works best in Chrome or Firefox and may not perform consistently in Internet Explorer.
Note: Because of a coding error this map was displaying the incorrect rates for new cases in the last 7 days per 100,000 people — the issue should now be resolved.. The Tribune adjusted the data shown on the map below to focus on new cases, those the state tracked in the last 7 seven days. The totals for the entire pandemic are still available, but in the pop-up after tapping or clicking on a ZIP.


chicagotribune--2020-05-03--Tracking Illinois coronavirus: 2,618 deaths, 61,499 confirmed cases, 319,313 tests, 26% ICU beds, 64

Tracking Illinois coronavirus: 2,618 deaths, 61,499 confirmed cases, 319,313 tests, 26% ICU beds, 64% ventilators open

As the coronavirus spreads and local , state and national governments work to contain and mitigate the outbreak , the @ @ @ @ @ .

Johns Hopkins University & Medicine tracked coronavirus cases, deaths and test totals from Jan. 22, 2020 through March 10, 2023, but is no longer providing this data. These charts will no longer be updated.
Check the Illinois Department of Public Health for the most up-to-date data for Illinois.
[ Remembering the lives of those in Illinois who died from coronavirus ]
Can’t see these charts? Go here.