latimes--2020-12-17--2nd lawsuit is filed over Kobe Bryant helicopter crash photos

Calling unauthorized photographs of the helicopter crash that killed Kobe Bryant and nine others “ abhorrent and inappropriate , ” the husband of one of the victims has sued the Los Angeles County Sheriff ’ s Department .
Christina Mauser , 38 , was among those killed in the Jan. 26 crash in Calabasas that claimed the lives of Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter , Gianna , as they flew from Orange County to a youth basketball game .
Matthew Mauser filed a lawsuit Wednesday alleging that he and his three children suffered an invasion of privacy , emotional distress @ @ @ @ @ @ @ realization that photographs of their mother and wife were wrongfully taken , shown and discussed.
” The lawsuit mirrors one filed by Vanessa Bryant , widow of the former Lakers star , who has repeatedly castigated sheriff ’ s deputies ’ behavior and the failure of the department to take action against those involved .
The suit accuses Sheriff Alex Villanueva of falsely assuring the families “ that every possible measure ” was instituted to “ preserve and protect ” the accident scene on Las Virgenes Road .
Instead , court documents indicate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ those killed in the crash and shared the graphic images .
Those deputies were not part of the investigative team at the site , the suit says .
Vanessa Bryant has alleged that Villanueva personally assured her that deputies were securing the crash site to ensure her privacy .
She filed her suit after a Los Angeles Times investigation revealed that deputies had taken and shared photos of the crash scene .
Villanueva has admitted that eight deputies were involved in the taking and sharing of photos of the remains of Bryant and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he ordered the photos to be destroyed .
He said at least one of the photographs was shared outside the department .
The new lawsuit and Vanessa Bryant ’ s original suit allege that one of the deputies was at a Norwalk bar and showed the gruesome photos to a woman there .
The bartender overheard the conversation and reported it to the Sheriff ’ s Department , the suits state .
Villanueva attempted to cover up the graphic images by going to the sheriff ’ s substation that responded to the crash @ @ @ @ @ @ @ images , they would not face discipline , public safety sources with knowledge of the events told The Times .
After the Vanessa Bryant lawsuit was filed , Villanueva said “ the actions we took were the correct ones in extraordinary circumstances.
” The sheriff also noted that he was the one who proposed creating legislation making it a crime for first responders to take pictures of a dead person unless it ’ s part of the official investigation .
In September , Gov .
Gavin Newsom signed into law a bill making @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other first responders to take unauthorized photos of dead people at the scene of a crime or accident .
The new law takes effect Jan 1 .
The National Transportation Safety Board is continuing to investigate the January crash .
Christina Mauser was a top assistant coach on a Mamba Academy girls ’ basketball team and had flown to help Bryant coach the team in a game against the Fresno Lady Heat at Bryant ’ s Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks .
The others who died in the fiery crash were Payton @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Alyssa Altobelli ; and pilot Ara Zobayan .
The Times first reported that deputies had shared photographs taken at the site after someone filed a written complaint with the Sheriff ’ s Department three days after the crash .
In the aftermath , the Sheriff ’ s Department tried to keep a lid on the incident instead of following investigative protocols — even after determining that several more deputies had obtained photographs , according to sources not authorized to discuss the situation .
The Times , however , learned that Villanueva ordered @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , a move that some inside the department — as well as legal experts — said could amount to the destruction of evidence .
Following the revelations , an attorney for Vanessa Bryant said that she had gone to the Sheriff ’ s Department after the crash and requested the area be designated a “ no-fly zone ” and guarded against photographers .
After The Times reported on the scandal , Villanueva said he launched an investigation , which he asked the office of the Inspector General to monitor .
The suit , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the photos , he did not inform the families , investigate or inspect cellphones used to take the pictures and instead directed a “ cover-up.
” The action , the suit alleges , compounded the emotional pain of the deaths .
The department has since moved to discipline one deputy who stored the photographs on a personal cellphone and shared them with friends , family and coworkers on “ multiple occasions , ” according to the Sheriff ’ s Department ’ s quarterly disciplinary report .
The deputy , who faces a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the report .
The photo scandal fallout is likely to get costly .
Last month , Los Angeles County Fire Capt .
Tony Imbrenda , who served as the agency ’ s spokesman the day of the crash , sued the Fire Department , alleging that his career was severely damaged after he fell under a cloud of suspicion regarding the crash scene photos .
Imbrenda said he received multiple photographs from people working at the crash site , “ as is a common practice on all major incidents , ” but did @ @ @ @ @ @ @ second day , he said , he assisted an FBI photographer and did take photos .
He says he was reassigned following the scandal .

Officials remove a body from the wreckage in Calabasas in January where Kobe Bryant and eight others, including Christina Mauser, died in a helicopter crash.
Calling unauthorized photographs of the helicopter crash that killed Kobe Bryant and nine others “abhorrent and inappropriate,” the husband of one of the victims has sued the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
Christina Mauser, 38, was among those killed in the Jan. 26 crash in Calabasas that claimed the lives of Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, as they flew from Orange County to a youth basketball game.
Matthew Mauser filed a lawsuit Wednesday alleging that he and his three children suffered an invasion of privacy, emotional distress, humiliation and anxiety “from the realization that photographs of their mother and wife were wrongfully taken, shown and discussed.”
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The lawsuit mirrors one filed by Vanessa Bryant, widow of the former Lakers star, who has repeatedly castigated sheriff’s deputies’ behavior and the failure of the department to take action against those involved.
The suit accuses Sheriff Alex Villanueva of falsely assuring the families “that every possible measure” was instituted to “preserve and protect” the accident scene on Las Virgenes Road. Instead, court documents indicate at least eight deputies snapped photographs of those killed in the crash and shared the graphic images. Those deputies were not part of the investigative team at the site, the suit says.
Vanessa Bryant has alleged that Villanueva personally assured her that deputies were securing the crash site to ensure her privacy. She filed her suit after a Los Angeles Times investigation revealed that deputies had taken and shared photos of the crash scene.
Villanueva has admitted that eight deputies were involved in the taking and sharing of photos of the remains of Bryant and other victims at the scene and that he ordered the photos to be destroyed. He said at least one of the photographs was shared outside the department.
The new lawsuit and Vanessa Bryant’s original suit allege that one of the deputies was at a Norwalk bar and showed the gruesome photos to a woman there. The bartender overheard the conversation and reported it to the Sheriff’s Department, the suits state.
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Villanueva attempted to cover up the graphic images by going to the sheriff’s substation that responded to the crash and telling deputies if they deleted the images, they would not face discipline, public safety sources with knowledge of the events told The Times.
After the Vanessa Bryant lawsuit was filed, Villanueva said “the actions we took were the correct ones in extraordinary circumstances.” The sheriff also noted that he was the one who proposed creating legislation making it a crime for first responders to take pictures of a dead person unless it’s part of the official investigation.
In September, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law a bill making it a crime for peace officers and other first responders to take unauthorized photos of dead people at the scene of a crime or accident. The new law
takes effect Jan 1.
The National Transportation Safety Board is continuing to investigate the January crash.
Christina Mauser was a top assistant coach on a Mamba Academy girls’ basketball team and had flown to help Bryant coach the team in a game against the Fresno Lady Heat at Bryant’s Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks. The others who died in the fiery crash were Payton and Sarah Chester; John, Keri and Alyssa Altobelli; and pilot Ara Zobayan.
The Times first reported that deputies had shared photographs taken at the site after someone filed a written complaint with the Sheriff’s Department three days after the crash. In the aftermath, the Sheriff’s Department tried to keep a lid on the incident instead of following investigative protocols — even after determining that several more deputies had obtained photographs, according to sources not authorized to discuss the situation.
The Times, however, learned that Villanueva ordered the deputies to quietly delete the photos, a move that some inside the department — as well as legal experts — said could amount to the destruction of evidence.
Following the revelations, an attorney for Vanessa Bryant said that she had gone to the Sheriff’s Department after the crash and requested the area be designated a “no-fly zone” and guarded against photographers.
After The Times reported on the scandal, Villanueva said he launched an investigation, which he asked the office of the Inspector General to monitor.
The suit, however, alleges that when Villanueva learned of the photos, he did not inform the families, investigate or inspect cellphones used to take the pictures and instead directed a “cover-up.” The action, the suit alleges, compounded the emotional pain of the deaths.
The department has since moved to discipline one deputy who stored the photographs on a personal cellphone and shared them with friends, family and coworkers on “multiple occasions,” according to the Sheriff’s Department’s quarterly disciplinary report. The deputy, who faces a 10-day suspension, was not identified in the report.
The photo scandal fallout is likely to get costly. Last month, Los Angeles County Fire Capt. Tony Imbrenda, who served as the agency’s spokesman the day of the crash, sued the Fire Department, alleging that his career was severely damaged after he fell under a cloud of suspicion regarding the crash scene photos.
Imbrenda said he received multiple photographs from people working at the crash site, “as is a common practice on all major incidents,” but did nothing wrong with them. On the second day, he said, he assisted an FBI photographer and did take photos. He says he was reassigned following the scandal.


latimes--2020-12-17--O.C. hospitals told not to divert ambulances despite influx of COVID-19 patients

The Orange County Health Care Agency has issued an order that forbids hospital emergency rooms from redirecting ambulances to other medical facilities .
The order — the first of its kind in the region — went into effect at 7 p.m. Tuesday after 20 of the county ’ s 25 emergency medical centers became so overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients that they began diverting ambulances to other facilities in Orange County .
As a result , ambulances were having difficulty finding a hospital that would take patients .
“ This is not sustainable , ” Carl Schultz , emergency medical services @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , said in a written statement .
Schultz said ReddiNet , the web-based emergency communications system that is used to report hospital , patient and emergency event status , would not accept “ diversion status ” from hospitals for a period of 72 hours .
Hospital diversion is defined as a notification that patients who are arriving by ambulance will not be accepted by the receiving facility .
“ If the situation remains at its present state , this suspension of diversion will continue , ” Schultz said , acknowledging the stress it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ acknowledge these directives will be challenging to implement , but current circumstances dictate such action is required to support the EMS system.
” The flood of COVID-19 patients has put unprecedented pressure on Orange County hospitals amid rising concerns about the potential collapse of the region ’ s emergency medical system .
In an effort to help , the county said it would deploy mobile field hospitals , which help expand hospital capacity by adding additional beds to existing grounds .
In a news release , Orange County health director Dr. Clayton Chau @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ sounds alarming because it is alarming.
” “ I implore our residents not to gather with other households and limit upcoming holiday celebrations to those you live with , ” he said .
The field hospitals are housed in large , semi-type trailers that contain heavy-duty canvas tents with hard flooring , temperature-control , running water , toilets and showers , generators , lighting and air purifiers , the agency said .
Three hospitals — Fountain Valley Regional , St. Jude Medical Center and UC Irvine — have requested the units , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ beds to their existing capacities , officials said .
One medical professional at St. Jude told Orange County Supervisor Doug Chaffee that the hospital was reaching its limit .
“ They ’ re using every available bed , ” Chaffee told City News Service .
“ The emergency department has an overflow .
... All the Orange County hospitals are in the same situation.
” The state has opened temporary field hospitals in Costa Mesa , Porterville , Sacramento and Imperial , with other facilities on standby in Riverside , Richmond , Fresno @ @ @ @ @ @ @ According to , there were 1,486 coronavirus-positive patients hospitalized in Orange County as of Wednesday — an all-time high that ’ s more than double the total from two weeks ago .
The number of COVID-19 patients in intensive care had risen to 319 countywide on Wednesday .
A month ago , there were 85 .
The county is also dealing with an uptick in outbreaks at skilled nursing homes , assisted living facilities and county jails .
As of Wednesday , 32 skilled nursing facilities and 36 assisted living facilities had at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
An outbreak in the county ’ s jails that started last week has now infected 627 inmates , up from 416 reported Monday .
The county is awaiting results of 86 more tests .
Dr. Paul Sheikewitz of Providence St. Joseph ’ s Hospital in Orange , who was among the first to receive the Pfizer vaccine Wednesday , said the hospital was nearing its limit .
“ The greatest challenge is the burden of the number of patients we see versus the number of staff able to take care of patients @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The hospital ’ s chief executive , Dr. Jeremy Zoch , said the latest surge “ has been pretty incredible.
” “ Last summer , when we had our surge over July , we had the National Guard in here helping us .
...
But , frankly , this surge we have 75 % more patients than the last surge , ” he said .
“ It has challenged us.
” City News Service and Times staff writers Rong-Gong Lin II and Luke Money contributed to this report .

UC Irvine Medical Center is one of three hospitals in Orange County that have requested mobile hospital units, which will add between 25 and 50 beds to their existing capacities.
The Orange County Health Care Agency has issued an order that forbids hospital emergency rooms from redirecting ambulances to other medical facilities.
The order — the first of its kind in the region — went into effect at 7 p.m. Tuesday after 20 of the county’s 25 emergency medical centers became so overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients that they began diverting ambulances to other facilities in Orange County. As a result, ambulances were having difficulty finding a hospital that would take patients.
“This is not sustainable,” Carl Schultz, emergency medical services director for the Orange County Health Agency, said in a written statement.
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Schultz said ReddiNet, the web-based emergency communications system that is used to report hospital, patient and emergency event status, would not accept “diversion status” from hospitals for a period of 72 hours. Hospital diversion is defined as a notification that patients who are arriving by ambulance will not be accepted by the receiving facility.
“If the situation remains at its present state, this suspension of diversion will continue,” Schultz said, acknowledging the stress it would put on hospitals. “I acknowledge these directives will be challenging to implement, but current circumstances dictate such action is required to support the EMS system.”
The flood of COVID-19 patients has put unprecedented pressure on Orange County hospitals amid rising concerns about the potential collapse of the region’s emergency medical system. In an effort to help, the county said it would deploy mobile field hospitals, which help expand hospital capacity by adding additional beds to existing grounds.
In a news release, Orange County health director Dr. Clayton Chau said the deployment of the field hospitals “sounds alarming because it is alarming.”
“I implore our residents not to gather with other households and limit upcoming holiday celebrations to those you live with,” he said.
Advertisement
The field hospitals are housed in large, semi-type trailers that contain heavy-duty canvas tents with hard flooring, temperature-control, running water, toilets and showers, generators, lighting and air purifiers, the agency said. Three hospitals — Fountain Valley Regional, St. Jude Medical Center and UC Irvine — have requested the units, which will add between 25 and 50 beds to their existing capacities, officials said.
One medical professional at St. Jude told Orange County Supervisor Doug Chaffee that the hospital was reaching its limit.
“They’re using every available bed,” Chaffee told City News Service. “The emergency department has an overflow. ... All the Orange County hospitals are in the same situation.”
The state has opened temporary field hospitals in Costa Mesa, Porterville, Sacramento and Imperial, with other facilities on standby in Riverside, Richmond, Fresno, San Diego and San Francisco.
According to the latest state data , there were 1,486 coronavirus-positive patients hospitalized in Orange County as of Wednesday — an all-time high that’s more than double the total from two weeks ago.
The number of COVID-19 patients in intensive care had risen to 319 countywide on Wednesday. A month ago, there were 85.
The county is also dealing with an uptick in outbreaks at skilled nursing homes, assisted living facilities and county jails.
As of Wednesday, 32 skilled nursing facilities and 36 assisted living facilities had at least two confirmed cases of coronavirus infection. An outbreak in the county’s jails that started last week has now infected 627 inmates, up from 416 reported Monday. The county is awaiting results of 86 more tests.
Dr. Paul Sheikewitz of Providence St. Joseph’s Hospital in Orange, who was among the first to receive the Pfizer vaccine Wednesday, said the hospital was nearing its limit.
“The greatest challenge is the burden of the number of patients we see versus the number of staff able to take care of patients,” he told City News Service.
The hospital’s chief executive, Dr. Jeremy Zoch, said the latest surge “has been pretty incredible.”
“Last summer, when we had our surge over July, we had the National Guard in here helping us. ... But, frankly, this surge we have 75% more patients than the last surge,” he said. “It has challenged us.”
City News Service and Times staff writers Rong-Gong Lin II and Luke Money contributed to this report.


latimes--2020-12-17--'Like a thief in the night:' How COVID-19 rampaged through one family

The Macias family has seven reasons to be furious that you will not wear a mask , that you went to Thanksgiving dinner for 20 without a second thought , that you dismiss the coronavirus as not much worse than the flu .
Alexandria Cantu Macias is reason No .
1 .
The 41-year-old spent a week in the hospital because COVID-19 stole her ability to breathe .
Reason No .
2 is Alexandria ’ s daughter , Gabriella Alvarado , age 13 , the first member of the big , close-knit Latino family to show symptoms .
Alexandria ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tested positive for the coronavirus , too .
They ’ re reasons No .
3 , 4 and 5 .
No .
6 is Luis Enrique Macias Sr .
Her husband .
He was only sick with COVID-19 for a few days .
Then his appetite came back , he took a little walk , told his pastor he was on the mend .
He died on Halloween .
He was 45 .
He wanted to start a Christian breakdance group , his son said at his funeral , and call it BDC @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ‘ BDC ?
What does that mean , Pops ?
’ He ’ d say , ‘ It stands for Boogie Down Christ.
’ ” The congregation at the outdoor ritual laughed .
Luis Enrique Macias Jr. continued on .
“ That ’ s the kind of dad , son , uncle , brother he is , just a goofball.
” And reason No .
7 ?
Tatyana Cantu Broughton , Alexandria ’ s sister .
Tatyana was 37 , an essential worker who took care of elderly patients at Loving Care Living @ @ @ @ @ @ @ color purple and Dia de los Muertos , which ends on Nov. 2 .
That ’ s the day she died of COVID-19 , less than 48 hours after her brother-in-law .
Seven COVID-19 patients .
Four hospitalizations .
Two funerals .
One family .
The virus , Alexandria said , is “ like a thief in the night .
It comes in to steal and destroy , and you just don ’ t know when it ’ s coming in , when it ’ s going to affect you .
...
It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the virus , however , is not evenly shared .
The greatest burden during the pandemic ’ s first 10 months or so has fallen on Latino and Black people , on essential workers , on multigenerational households sharing close quarters , on those with underlying health conditions , such as diabetes .
On people like the Macias family .
Alexandria , Luis Sr. and Gabriella lived together in a three-bedroom house here in the working-class heart of the Coachella Valley .
Tatyana lived with them , too .
And so did Alexandria @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Norma Cantu Hernandez , 61 , and Federico Hernandez , 48 .
The family does not know how COVID-19 invaded the household .
But one thing is clear : No adult in that immediate circle had the luxury of working from home .
Alexandria is a stock clerk at the Burlington store in Palm Springs .
Federico did prep work and washed dishes part-time at an Applebee ’ s restaurant before stay-at-home orders decimated its staff ; now he works in construction .
Luis did maintenance for Black & White Sweeping in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ trash cans emptied .
Tatyana cared for senior citizens , cooking and helping them dress .
Gabriella was the only exception .
She ’ s in eighth grade and all her classes were remote .
But she got sick first — with a slight fever and a runny nose on Oct. 20 .
For the next seven weeks , each passing day was worse than the one that came before .
Alexandria ticks them off , her voice calm .
It is early December , and , she says , “ emotionally , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ And though it ’ s been a month already , it ’ s just like , it ’ s like little things trigger me .
“ I ’ ll still see , like , memories or things like we used to do together , me and my sister , or me and my husband and the kids .
And it just starts to bring a tear .
But I , like , I can ’ t cry .
Because that ’ s not what they wanted .
We were always happy.
” Until @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Oct. 21 : Norma , Alexandria ’ s mom , takes Gabriella to be tested for the coronavirus and gets tested herself at the same time .
Two days later , the results arrive , and it ’ s bad news all around .
Grandmother and granddaughter are both positive for the coronavirus .
Oct. 24 : Alexandria , Luis Sr. , Tatyana and Federico get tested .
Four days later , more test results .
More bad news .
All four tested positive .
“ Once they told us we had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all just quarantined in the house , ” Alexandria said .
“ We do what we had to do .
The six feet .
Everybody stayed in their own room .
We were doing the sanitizing , not going out , people were bringing us food and stuff due to COVID.
” On Halloween , Alexandria headed to her doctor ’ s office .
She had to pick up some medication .
When she got home , she went into the room where Luis was sleeping .
It was 10 a.m. She said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hungry , stroked his forehead , pushed his hair back off his face .
He was cold .
She called for her mom .
And stood there .
“ I ’ m in shock , ” she said .
“ I didn ’ t have no words .
I couldn ’ t get a tear out .
...
I couldn ’ t do anything but breathe right then and there when I was looking at him.
” That was Saturday .
On Sunday evening , Norma went to Tatyana ’ s room to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Tatyana didn ’ t respond to her mother ’ s questions .
Her skin was cool to the touch .
An ambulance came , raced her to Eisenhower Health .
At 3 a.m. Monday , Tatyana was dead .
“ I go , ‘ That ’ s two.
’ I go , ‘ What ’ s next ?
’ And I ’ m just praying and just asking why , ” Alexandria recounted .
“ And then that [ same ] Monday , my mom starts having trouble breathing .
So I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Let me take you to the hospital.
’ ” Norma spent the night at Eisenhower and came home on Nov. 3 , oxygen tank in tow .
On Nov. 4 , it was Alexandria ’ s turn .
She spiked a 102-degree fever , shook uncontrollably .
Another ambulance ride , another hospital stay .
She came down with pneumonia .
She spent a week at Eisenhower .
“ When I met her , she was on about four liters of oxygen , ” said Amanda Beck , a registered nurse who cared @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and eventually discharged her .
“ Whenever she ’ d get up , she was short of breath .
... She did come up COVID positive .
Uncontrolled [ blood ] sugar .
Blood infection .
She was sick .
She was scared.
” Thanksgiving for the Macias family was bookended with funerals .
Luis Sr. 's service was first , five days before the holiday .
His death leaves a yawning hole in his family and his church , Koinonia Life Ministries in Cathedral City .
He started out there six years @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as Pastor Joe Adams ’ dear friend and “ right-hand man.
” He started out struggling with alcoholism and ended up sober , a mentor to other men in the congregation , a regular presence at the local homeless shelter , a man remembered for the big heart in his small , diabetic body .
His Nov. 21 service celebrated that arc of a life .
“ My dad would never claim to be a perfect man , ” Luis Jr. told those gathered for his father ’ s funeral both in person @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Pops thought he was the bottom of the barrel .
He was always a quiet guy , very shy and not very affectionate either .
“ I laugh about it now , but we ’ re talking about the Louie who would show up to my baseball games , he ’ d show up drunk and say , ‘ Hey , No .
5 , you suck !
’ ” his son continued .
“ I mention this , and the reason why these are my favorite memories is because I can see @ @ @ @ @ @ @ man who was not scared to give hugs and say the words ‘ I love you ’ to his family and friends.
” Or as another tearful speaker put it after praising the man he called Brother Louie : “ It ’ s not how you start , but how you finish.
” Luis Sr. was cremated on Dec. 1 , wearing a Tennessee Titans shirt and wrapped in a Titans blanket .
Emblems of his favorite football team .
Christmas presents Alexandria never had a chance to give him .
Tatyana was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , we thank you that you are there to comfort us through the times that we don ’ t understand , through the times , Lord , when the memories bring laughter and tears.
” He stood beside a green-draped table with a purple urn containing Tatyana ’ s ashes .
There were bouquets of flowers and shiny purple balloons in the shape of stars .
Tatyana ’ s family members wore white T-shirts emblazoned with a photograph of the dead woman ’ s face , brightly painted for Dia de los Muertos @ @ @ @ @ @ @ released the balloons into the bright blue sky and watched them float away .

The Macias family has seven reasons to be furious that you will not wear a mask, that you went to Thanksgiving dinner for 20 without a second thought, that you dismiss the coronavirus as not much worse than the flu.
Alexandria Cantu Macias is reason No. 1. The 41-year-old spent a week in the hospital because COVID-19 stole her ability to breathe. Reason No. 2 is Alexandria’s daughter, Gabriella Alvarado, age 13, the first member of the big, close-knit Latino family to show symptoms.
Alexandria’s mother, stepfather and mother-in-law all tested positive for the coronavirus, too. They’re reasons No. 3, 4 and 5.
No. 6 is Luis Enrique Macias Sr. Her husband. He was only sick with COVID-19 for a few days. Then his appetite came back, he took a little walk, told his pastor he was on the mend. He died on Halloween. He was 45. He wanted to start a Christian breakdance group, his son said at his funeral, and call it BDC.
“I’m like, ‘BDC? What does that mean, Pops?’ He’d say, ‘It stands for Boogie Down Christ.’” The congregation at the outdoor ritual laughed. Luis Enrique Macias Jr. continued on. “That’s the kind of dad, son, uncle, brother he is, just a goofball.”
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Norma Cantu Hernandez, mother of Tatyana Cantu Broughton, embraces Getty Alvarado at Tatyana’s memorial service at Desert Memorial Park in Cathedral City. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)
And reason No. 7? Tatyana Cantu Broughton, Alexandria’s sister. Tatyana was 37, an essential worker who took care of elderly patients at Loving Care Living in Palm Springs.
She adored the color purple and Dia de los Muertos, which ends on Nov. 2. That’s the day she died of COVID-19, less than 48 hours after her brother-in-law.
Seven COVID-19 patients. Four hospitalizations. Two funerals. One family.
The virus, Alexandria said, is “like a thief in the night. It comes in to steal and destroy, and you just don’t know when it’s coming in, when it’s going to affect you. ... It affects everybody.”
Getty Alvarado gathers photos of Tatyana Cantu Broughton following a memorial service at Desert Memorial Park. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)
The damage wrought by the virus, however, is not evenly shared. The greatest burden during the pandemic’s first 10 months or so has fallen on Latino and Black people, on essential workers, on multigenerational households sharing close quarters, on those with underlying health conditions, such as diabetes.
On people like the Macias family.
Alexandria, Luis Sr. and Gabriella lived together in a three-bedroom house here in the working-class heart of the Coachella Valley. Tatyana lived with them, too. And so did Alexandria and Tatyana’s mother and stepfather, Norma Cantu Hernandez, 61, and Federico Hernandez, 48.
The family does not know how COVID-19 invaded the household. But one thing is clear: No adult in that immediate circle had the luxury of working from home.
Alexandria is a stock clerk at the Burlington store in Palm Springs. Federico did prep work and washed dishes part-time at an Applebee’s restaurant before stay-at-home orders decimated its staff; now he works in construction. Luis did maintenance for Black & White Sweeping in Indio, keeping parking lots clean and trash cans emptied. Tatyana cared for senior citizens, cooking and helping them dress.
A cemetery worker places the urn of Tatyana Cantu Broughton into her grave at Desert Memorial Park in Cathedral City. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)
Gabriella was the only exception. She’s in eighth grade and all her classes were remote. But she got sick first — with a slight fever and a runny nose on Oct. 20.
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For the next seven weeks, each passing day was worse than the one that came before. Alexandria ticks them off, her voice calm. It is early December, and, she says, “emotionally, it’s still a shocker. And though it’s been a month already, it’s just like, it’s like little things trigger me.
“I’ll still see, like, memories or things like we used to do together, me and my sister, or me and my husband and the kids. And it just starts to bring a tear. But I, like, I can’t cry. Because that’s not what they wanted. We were always happy.”
Until the last week or two in October.
Oct. 21: Norma, Alexandria’s mom, takes Gabriella to be tested for the coronavirus and gets tested herself at the same time. Two days later, the results arrive, and it’s bad news all around. Grandmother and granddaughter are both positive for the coronavirus.
Oct. 24: Alexandria, Luis Sr., Tatyana and Federico get tested. Four days later, more test results. More bad news. All four tested positive.
Getty Alvarado, left, Alexandria Cantu Macias, center, and Marianna Solares, right, gather for Tatyana’s memorial service. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)
“Once they told us we had all came back positive, we were all just quarantined in the house,” Alexandria said. “We do what we had to do. The six feet. Everybody stayed in their own room. We were doing the sanitizing, not going out, people were bringing us food and stuff due to COVID.”
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On Halloween, Alexandria headed to her doctor’s office. She had to pick up some medication. When she got home, she went into the room where Luis was sleeping. It was 10 a.m. She said good morning, asked if he was hungry, stroked his forehead, pushed his hair back off his face.
He was cold. She called for her mom. And stood there.
Oct. 31: Luis Sr. is dead.
“I’m in shock,” she said. “I didn’t have no words. I couldn’t get a tear out. ... I couldn’t do anything but breathe right then and there when I was looking at him.”
That was Saturday. On Sunday evening, Norma went to Tatyana’s room to check on her before going to bed. Tatyana didn’t respond to her mother’s questions. Her skin was cool to the touch. An ambulance came, raced her to Eisenhower Health. At 3 a.m. Monday, Tatyana was dead.
“I go, ‘That’s two.’ I go, ‘What’s next?’ And I’m just praying and just asking why,” Alexandria recounted. “And then that [same] Monday, my mom starts having trouble breathing. So I tell her, I go, ‘Let me take you to the hospital.’”
Norma spent the night at Eisenhower and came home on Nov. 3, oxygen tank in tow. On Nov. 4, it was Alexandria’s turn. She spiked a 102-degree fever, shook uncontrollably. Another ambulance ride, another hospital stay. She came down with pneumonia. She spent a week at Eisenhower.
Balloons float away at the end of Tatyana’s memorial service. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)
“When I met her, she was on about four liters of oxygen,” said Amanda Beck, a registered nurse who cared for Alexandria at the Rancho Mirage hospital and eventually discharged her. “Whenever she’d get up, she was short of breath. ... She did come up COVID positive. Uncontrolled [blood] sugar. Blood infection. She was sick. She was scared.”
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Thanksgiving for the Macias family was bookended with funerals.
Luis Sr.’s service was first, five days before the holiday. His death leaves a yawning hole in his family and his church, Koinonia Life Ministries in Cathedral City.
He started out there six years ago as head usher and ended up as Pastor Joe Adams’ dear friend and “right-hand man.” He started out struggling with alcoholism and ended up sober, a mentor to other men in the congregation, a regular presence at the local homeless shelter, a man remembered for the big heart in his small, diabetic body.
California From healthcare worker to patient: Death in Room 311 For an investigator with the L.A. County Dept. of Medical Examiner-Coroner, the job on this day is to piece together the puzzle of the victim’s life and death — and to stay healthy.
His Nov. 21 service celebrated that arc of a life.
“My dad would never claim to be a perfect man,” Luis Jr. told those gathered for his father’s funeral both in person and via Facebook Live. “My Pops thought he was the bottom of the barrel. He was always a quiet guy, very shy and not very affectionate either.
“I laugh about it now, but we’re talking about the Louie who would show up to my baseball games, he’d show up drunk and say, ‘Hey, No. 5, you suck!’” his son continued. “I mention this, and the reason why these are my favorite memories is because I can see how Christ molded my dad into the man who was not scared to give hugs and say the words ‘I love you’ to his family and friends.”
Or as another tearful speaker put it after praising the man he called Brother Louie: “It’s not how you start, but how you finish.”
Column One A showcase for compelling storytelling from the Los Angeles Times. More Stories
Luis Sr. was cremated on Dec. 1, wearing a Tennessee Titans shirt and wrapped in a Titans blanket. Emblems of his favorite football team. Christmas presents Alexandria never had a chance to give him.
Tatyana was buried two days later.
Adams began the graveside service with a prayer.
“Father, we thank you that you are there to comfort us through the times that we don’t understand, through the times, Lord, when the memories bring laughter and tears.”
He stood beside a green-draped table with a purple urn containing Tatyana’s ashes. There were bouquets of flowers and shiny purple balloons in the shape of stars. Tatyana’s family members wore white T-shirts emblazoned with a photograph of the dead woman’s face, brightly painted for Dia de los Muertos.
When the service ended, they released the balloons into the bright blue sky and watched them float away.


latimes--2020-12-17--Skyrocketing coronavirus levels in California sewage point to rapid spread of virus

Sewage data analyzed in Silicon Valley wastewater treatment plants confirms that the latest wave of coronavirus infections is sharply worse than the ones in the spring and summer .
Officials in Santa Clara County have been routinely testing solid waste samples in sewage to detect levels of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 as part of a project funded by Stanford University .
The virus can be found in human stool and detected in people who are not showing signs of illness , and scientists have investigated whether testing wastewater can reveal trends about how common the coronavirus is in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can be helpful .
Analysis of settled solid matter in wastewater conducted in the spring and early summer showed that as virus levels in wastewater went up , so did weekly coronavirus case rates in the region .
Now , the levels of virus in recent weeks is far greater than seen in either of the prior two waves of the pandemic .
“ In early November , you can see it really skyrocketed .
It has taken off , which again indicates widespread infections in the community , ” Michael Balliet , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Environmental Health , told the county ’ s Board of Supervisors this week .
“ On Thanksgiving Day , we had one of our highest detections in the sample .
And then a few days ago , it skyrocketed further above that.
” Some of the highest virus levels were detected on Thanksgiving Day and in more recent days , he said .
“ It continues to be a high , high , high level detected in wastewater , ” Balliet said , “ which is very concerning because it ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were at — even in the June timeframe.
” There has been a growing focus on wastewater as a way of tracking the coronavirus .
Researchers near — from Stanford to the University of Arizona — and far , from Australia to Paris — have been ramping up wastewater analyses to track the spread of SARS-CoV-2 , the virus that causes COVID-19 .
UC San Diego has been testing its campus ’ sewage for signs of the coronavirus as a way of tracing infections .
This summer , officials found the coronavirus in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ helping confirm cases there .

Sewage data analyzed in Silicon Valley wastewater treatment plants confirms that the latest wave of coronavirus infections is sharply worse than the ones in the spring and summer.
Officials in Santa Clara County have been routinely testing solid waste samples in sewage to detect levels of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 as part of a project funded by Stanford University.
The virus can be found in human stool and detected in people who are not showing signs of illness, and scientists have investigated whether testing wastewater can reveal trends about how common the coronavirus is in the community.
Preliminary evidence shows the method can be helpful. Analysis of settled solid matter in wastewater conducted in the spring and early summer showed that as virus levels in wastewater went up, so did weekly coronavirus case rates in the region.
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Now, the levels of virus in recent weeks is far greater than seen in either of the prior two waves of the pandemic.
“In early November, you can see it really skyrocketed. It has taken off, which again indicates widespread infections in the community,” Michael Balliet, director of the Santa Clara County Department of Environmental Health, told the county’s Board of Supervisors this week. “On Thanksgiving Day, we had one of our highest detections in the sample. And then a few days ago, it skyrocketed further above that.”
Some of the highest virus levels were detected on Thanksgiving Day and in more recent days, he said.
Unprecedented amounts of coronavirus was detected in the wastewater of Santa Clara County during its worst surge of the pandemic. The solid lines indicate coronavirus case counts; the red dots indicate how much virus was detected in the wastewater. (Santa Clara County)
“It continues to be a high, high, high level detected in wastewater,” Balliet said, “which is very concerning because it’s orders of magnitude greater than where we were at — even in the June timeframe.”
There has been a growing focus on wastewater as a way of tracking the coronavirus.
Researchers near — from Stanford to the University of Arizona — and far, from Australia to Paris — have been ramping up wastewater analyses to track the spread of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
UC San Diego has been testing its campus’ sewage for signs of the coronavirus as a way of tracing infections.
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This summer, officials found the coronavirus in the sewage at Yosemite National Park, helping confirm cases there.


latimes--2020-12-17--Already 'under siege,' hospitals in L.A. County brace for far worse conditions in coming weeks

With COVID-19 cases exploding across Los Angeles County , officials believe hospitals will be hit by a wave of patients in the coming weeks much larger than even the most dire forecasts and pushing the region ’ s medical infrastructure to the brink .
There are nearly 1,000 people with COVID-19 in L.A. County ’ s intensive care units as of Tuesday ; forecasts say that by early January , there could be between 1,600 to 3,600 COVID-19 patients in need of ICU beds if virus transmission trends remain the same .
There are only 2,500 licensed ICU beds in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not enough trained staff to care for the volume of patients that are projected to come and need care , ” said Dr. Christina Ghaly , the county ’ s director of health services .
“ Our hospitals are under siege , and our model shows no end in sight.
” Hospitals in L.A. County are filling up as never before .
For much of September and October , about 100 patients a day with COVID-19 were being newly admitted into hospitals in L.A. County daily .
Just before Thanksgiving , nearly 300 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Now , there are about 600 new patients with COVID-19 needing hospital admissions daily , and officials expect that that could rise to anywhere from 750 new COVID-19 patients a day to 1,350 a day by New Year ’ s Eve .
“ If the numbers continue to increase the way they have , I am afraid that we may run out of capacity within our hospitals , ” added Dr. Denise Whitfield , associate medical director with the L.A. County emergency medical services agency and an emergency room physician at Harbor-UCLA @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the level of care that every resident in Los Angeles County deserves may be threatened just by the fact that we are overwhelmed.
” The new forecast comes as L.A. County experienced new daily records in both COVID cases and deaths .
For the first time , a Los Angeles Times county-by-county tally found more than 50,000 new coronavirus cases and nearly 400 deaths in California reported in a single day .
The Times survey Wednesday night found 51,724 new coronavirus cases reported in a single day , shattering the state ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 42,088 cases were reported .
Bracing for the weeks to come Ghaly previewed what would happen if the healthcare system does become overwhelmed : exhausted doctors and nurses stretched beyond their capacity , increasing the chance that the sick will die and medical staff will be forced to ration intensive care unit beds , because the “ system simply does not have the ability or the staff to provide the care for all those who need it , ” Ghaly said .
Hospitals in L.A. County are desperately trying to free up hospital @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as possible , but there is only so much longer that hospitals can stretch their staff to meet the demand until the quality of patient care starts to worsen .
“ Many hospitals have already broken nurse staffing ratios , and their staff are not necessarily getting either the breaks or rest that they ’ re supposed to be getting , ” Ghaly said .
There remain only about 100 available ICU beds in L.A. County , which is home to 10 million people .
County scientists estimate that every infected person is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1.2 other people — among the highest such number since the first weeks of the pandemic .
“ So today in Los Angeles County , let me be clear : We have a problem , ” Ghaly said .
“ And at this point all our hospital systems can do is brace for these days and weeks to come .
“ This is real , ” Whitfield said .
Of the past nine months of the pandemic , “ it ’ s the worst that I have seen things in terms of looking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ patients.
” As of the past weekend , Harbor-UCLA was still able to manage its COVID patients , but that overcrowding meant that some patients needed to stay in the emergency department when they should ’ ve been transferred elsewhere in the hospital .
“ What that means is that when a patient needs to be admitted to the hospital , requiring either an ICU or an inpatient bed , that we just don ’ t have the staffing or the the actual bed space to to to care for them , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ then makes it harder for emergency physicians and nurses to take care of patients with other emergencies , including strokes , heart attacks and trauma .
‘ I am afraid that we may run out of capacity ’ Whitfield said she ’ s been an emergency room doctor for a decade , but the past weekend was the first time where she felt the overcrowding situation “ has actually threatened that the the level of care that we can provide for our patients.
” The pandemic has exhausted the medical staff .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , with sick patients that have had difficulty breathing .
We have had to counsel family members with some uncertainty as to what might happen to their loved ones .
And we have dealt with death , ” Whitfield said .
“ And so looking at ... how these numbers are increasing throughout the county , it ’ s really , really quite frightening to me , ” Whitfield said .
“ If the numbers continue to increase the way they have , I am afraid that we may run out of capacity @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ And the level of care that every resident in Los Angeles County deserves may be threatened just by the fact that we are overwhelmed.
” Too few heeded warnings to stay home on Thanksgiving Unfortunately , Ghaly said , too few people heeded the urgent pleas of health officials to stay home over the Thanksgiving holiday , and doctors and nurses around the country are now being inundated with those who contracted the coronavirus during that time .
“ We are seeing the impact of what happened over Thanksgiving .
It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and followed the message : Stay home and avoid gathering with others , ” Ghaly said .
“ transmission and new cases are soaring as a result of the holiday activity and the more general interactions and intermingling that occurred both before and after.
” More people are dying from COVID-19 in L.A. County than ever before in this pandemic .
On Wednesday , 134 deaths were reported , as were 22,469 new coronavirus cases , according to an independent Times tally — both single-day records .
Both numbers were far above the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 13,000 coronavirus cases a day and 71 deaths a day , infections and fatalities that are occurring at double the pace from two weeks ago .
1 in 80 people in L.A. County are believed to be contagious with the coronavirus Cumulatively , there have been more than 567,000 confirmed coronavirus cases and 8,572 COVID-19 deaths in L.A. County .
Turning around this crisis will be far harder than in the previous waves because the virus is so widespread , much worse than at any other point in the pandemic .
An estimated @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are now contagious with the virus ; that ’ s far worse than in late September , when county scientists calculated that 1 in 880 county residents were infectious .
“ We can slow the spread of the virus but it will take immense effort , ” Ghaly said .
“ We are still in for a rough few weeks at least , and potentially through January , if not beyond.
” The vaccine is coming too late to prevent this surge from happening , Ghaly said .
“ There is simply not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to make a difference among the general infection rate in the regular population.
” Ghaly urged that people cancel gatherings , such as birthday and Christmas parties .
“ Things that were safe in the fall or that were safe even two months ago are not safe today , ” Ghaly said .
“ Having a very small birthday party for your child in a park is not safe .
Having a very small holiday gathering is not safe .
Getting together with a couple of friends at dinner is not safe .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ it ’ s formal or informal , is not safe .
”

A patient survived a code blue and then was rushed to ICU at Providence St. John’s Health Center on Tuesday in Santa Monica.
With COVID-19 cases exploding across Los Angeles County, officials believe hospitals will be hit by a wave of patients in the coming weeks much larger than even the most dire forecasts and pushing the region’s medical infrastructure to the brink.
There are nearly 1,000 people with COVID-19 in L.A. County’s intensive care units as of Tuesday; forecasts say that by early January, there could be between 1,600 to 3,600 COVID-19 patients in need of ICU beds if virus transmission trends remain the same. There are only 2,500 licensed ICU beds in L.A. County.
“There are simply not enough trained staff to care for the volume of patients that are projected to come and need care,” said Dr. Christina Ghaly, the county’s director of health services. “Our hospitals are under siege, and our model shows no end in sight.”
Hospitals in L.A. County are filling up as never before. For much of September and October, about 100 patients a day with COVID-19 were being newly admitted into hospitals in L.A. County daily. Just before Thanksgiving, nearly 300 new patients a day were being admitted.
Now, there are about 600 new patients with COVID-19 needing hospital admissions daily, and officials expect that that could rise to anywhere from 750 new COVID-19 patients a day to 1,350 a day by New Year’s Eve.
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“If the numbers continue to increase the way they have, I am afraid that we may run out of capacity within our hospitals,” added Dr. Denise Whitfield, associate medical director with the L.A. County emergency medical services agency and an emergency room physician at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center near Torrance. “And the level of care that every resident in Los Angeles County deserves may be threatened just by the fact that we are overwhelmed.”
The new forecast comes as L.A. County experienced new daily records in both COVID cases and deaths.
For the first time, a Los Angeles Times county-by-county tally found more than 50,000 new coronavirus cases and nearly 400 deaths in California reported in a single day. The Times survey Wednesday night found 51,724 new coronavirus cases reported in a single day, shattering the state’s single-day record broken on Monday, when 42,088 cases were reported.
There are nearly 1,000 people with COVID-19 in L.A. County’s intensive care units as of Tuesday; forecasts say that by early January, there could be between 1,600 to 3,600 COVID-19 patients in need of ICU beds if virus transmission trends remain the same. There are only 2,500 licensed ICU beds in L.A. County.
Bracing for the weeks to come
Ghaly previewed what would happen if the healthcare system does become overwhelmed: exhausted doctors and nurses stretched beyond their capacity, increasing the chance that the sick will die and medical staff will be forced to ration intensive care unit beds, because the “system simply does not have the ability or the staff to provide the care for all those who need it,” Ghaly said.
Hospitals in L.A. County are desperately trying to free up hospital beds by discharging recovering patients as quickly as possible, but there is only so much longer that hospitals can stretch their staff to meet the demand until the quality of patient care starts to worsen.
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“Many hospitals have already broken nurse staffing ratios, and their staff are not necessarily getting either the breaks or rest that they’re supposed to be getting,” Ghaly said.
There remain only about 100 available ICU beds in L.A. County, which is home to 10 million people. County scientists estimate that every infected person is now on average transmitting the virus to 1.2 other people — among the highest such number since the first weeks of the pandemic.
“So today in Los Angeles County, let me be clear: We have a problem,” Ghaly said. “And at this point all our hospital systems can do is brace for these days and weeks to come.
Emergency room doctor: ‘Worst that I have seen’
Dr. Whitfield said conditions are rapidly deteriorating.
“This is real,” Whitfield said. Of the past nine months of the pandemic, “it’s the worst that I have seen things in terms of looking at our capacity to care for our patients.”
As of the past weekend, Harbor-UCLA was still able to manage its COVID patients, but that overcrowding meant that some patients needed to stay in the emergency department when they should’ve been transferred elsewhere in the hospital.
“What that means is that when a patient needs to be admitted to the hospital, requiring either an ICU or an inpatient bed, that we just don’t have the staffing or the the actual bed space to to to care for them,” Whitfield said.
A backed-up emergency room then makes it harder for emergency physicians and nurses to take care of patients with other emergencies, including strokes, heart attacks and trauma.
‘I am afraid that we may run out of capacity’
Whitfield said she’s been an emergency room doctor for a decade, but the past weekend was the first time where she felt the overcrowding situation “has actually threatened that the the level of care that we can provide for our patients.”
The pandemic has exhausted the medical staff.
“We have worked firsthand, and personally, with sick patients that have had difficulty breathing. We have had to counsel family members with some uncertainty as to what might happen to their loved ones. And we have dealt with death,” Whitfield said.
“And so looking at ... how these numbers are increasing throughout the county, it’s really, really quite frightening to me,” Whitfield said.
“If the numbers continue to increase the way they have, I am afraid that we may run out of capacity within our hospitals,” Whitfield said. “And the level of care that every resident in Los Angeles County deserves may be threatened just by the fact that we are overwhelmed.”
Too few heeded warnings to stay home on Thanksgiving
Unfortunately, Ghaly said, too few people heeded the urgent pleas of health officials to stay home over the Thanksgiving holiday, and doctors and nurses around the country are now being inundated with those who contracted the coronavirus during that time.
“We are seeing the impact of what happened over Thanksgiving. It does not seem that enough people heard and followed the message: Stay home and avoid gathering with others,” Ghaly said. “transmission and new cases are soaring as a result of the holiday activity and the more general interactions and intermingling that occurred both before and after.”
More people are dying from COVID-19 in L.A. County than ever before in this pandemic. On Wednesday, 134 deaths were reported, as were 22,469 new coronavirus cases, according to an independent Times tally — both single-day records.
Both numbers were far above the weekly average for those numbers — about 13,000 coronavirus cases a day and 71 deaths a day, infections and fatalities that are occurring at double the pace from two weeks ago.
1 in 80 people in L.A. County are believed to be contagious with the coronavirus
Cumulatively, there have been more than 567,000 confirmed coronavirus cases and 8,572 COVID-19 deaths in L.A. County.
Turning around this crisis will be far harder than in the previous waves because the virus is so widespread, much worse than at any other point in the pandemic. An estimated 1 in 80 people in L.A. County are now contagious with the virus; that’s far worse than in late September, when county scientists calculated that 1 in 880 county residents were infectious.
“We can slow the spread of the virus but it will take immense effort,” Ghaly said. “We are still in for a rough few weeks at least, and potentially through January, if not beyond.”
The vaccine is coming too late to prevent this surge from happening, Ghaly said. “There is simply not enough doses in a short enough timeframe to make a difference among the general infection rate in the regular population.”
Ghaly urged that people cancel gatherings, such as birthday and Christmas parties.
“Things that were safe in the fall or that were safe even two months ago are not safe today,” Ghaly said. “Having a very small birthday party for your child in a park is not safe. Having a very small holiday gathering is not safe. Getting together with a couple of friends at dinner is not safe. Participating in a sports tournament, whether it’s formal or informal, is not safe.”