Gov. DeSantis says Florida can’t take sick cruise ship passengers
by Lizandra Portal, WPEC Staff
Monday, March 30th 2020
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (WPEC) – The Holland America cruise ship with four dead passengers and more patients infected with the coronavirus is cleared to cross the Panama Canal, according to the Sun-Sentinel.
But whether it reaches Florida, remains to be seen. Gov. DeSantis told Fox News, “We cannot afford to have people who are not even Floridians dumped into South Florida using up those valuable resources,” said DeSantis, according to the Sun-Sentinel. “We view this as a big, big problem and we don’t want to see people dumped in southern Florida right now.”
https://wlos.com/news/nation-world/gov-desantis-says-florida-cant-take-sick-cruise-ship-passengers
FEMA sends refrigerated trucks to New York City to hold bodies
By ERIN DURKIN
03/30/2020 02:43 PM EDT
FEMA is sending refrigerated trucks to New York City to serve as temporary morgues as the death toll from the coronavirus grows.
There is a “desperate need” for morgue space in Queens in particular, FEMA regional administrator Thomas Von Essen said Monday. The borough has the most coronavirus cases in the city, and Elmhurst hospital has been swamped with gravely ill patients.
“We are going to have an awful lot of folks that aren’t going to make it,” Von Essen said at a press conference with Mayor Bill de Blasio, as they welcomed the hospital ship USNS Comfort to the city.
As of Monday morning, 790 people have died in the city from the coronavirus. There are 36,221 confirmed cases.