More of everything: frustration, protests and hope as pandemic continues to sicken and kill
“We never imagined that on this Mother’s Day we wouldn’t be gathered at a favorite restaurant or a family barbecue surrounded by our children and grandchildren.”
The word of the day on Saturday? More.
More masks. More protests. More frustration.
More signs for hope amid the pandemic, and more plans to return to normal or some semblance of it. And, sadly and as always these days, more sickness and more death.
“We’re making a lot of progress,” said New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, but “364 people went into a hospital in the past 24 hours with COVID-19. We are not out of the woods, folks. Let’s not forget that.”
Across the Philadelphia region, winterish temperatures and harsh winds proved a strong enforcer of government stay-at-home dictates. Snow fell from the sky in parts of Pennsylvania and New Jersey, as people prepared for a Mother’s Day riven by the coronavirus. Many will not be able to see their moms, because of the danger of transmitting the virus — or because so many elderly already have been taken.
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“We never imagined that on this Mother’s Day we wouldn’t be gathered at a favorite restaurant or a family barbecue surrounded by our children and grandchildren,” Mayor Jim Kenney’s office said in a statement. “We acknowledge your grief.”
Mother’s Day holds a special local significance: While the holiday has multiple origins, Philadelphia rightfully claims a role as a central founder. Department-store magnate John Wanamaker financed the campaign of Anna Jarvis, a West Virginian who moved to Philadelphia, to create a national observance, which President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed in 1914.
On Saturday, Philadelphia officials reported 364 new cases of COVID-19, for a total of 17,881, along with 16 more deaths, for a toll of 891.
The worldwide number of cases passed four million, including 278,000 who have died, according to Johns Hopkins University.
South Korea’s capital closed down 2,100 bars and nightspots because of a new cluster of infections, and Germany worked to contain fresh outbreaks at slaughterhouses, the Associated Press reported. That underscored the dilemma faced by authorities trying to reopen their nations, as in the United States, which continues to lead the world with more than 1.3 million cases that include nearly 80,000 deaths.
The Pennsylvania Heath Department announced 1,078 new cases for a total of 55,316, and the death toll stood at 3,688 as Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration moved ahead with its color-coded reopening plan.
“As we prepare to move a number of counties from red to yellow, we need all Pennsylvanians to continue to follow the social distancing and mitigation efforts,” said Secretary of Health Rachel Levine.
In Delaware County, Nichole Missino dropped her much-publicized plan to defy Wolf’s stay-at-home order and reopen her Giovanni’s barbershop. After local police and state licensers got involved, she opted to instead hold a rally, speaking against government officials who she said fail to understand the hardships imposed on small business owners.
“What happened to ‘Home of the free'?" Missino said during a protest that drew about 30 people to her shop in Media. “I don’t know where I live anymore.”
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Starting Monday, passengers, employees, and other personnel will be required to wear face masks covering both nose and mouth at Philadelphia International Airport.
Masks already are required aboard major airlines and at essential businesses in Pennsylvania. SEPTA previously required face coverings for its riders, but reversed that policy last month amid backlash after a man who was not wearing a mask was dragged off a bus by police.
In Kennett Square, health-care workers drove to the closed Longwood Gardens to be tested for coronavirus antibodies, as Chester County became the first in the state to offer that particular option.
“I feel like for me, I have the responsibility to the patients to make sure we can be safe as possible as we start to reopen our practices to provide routine care,” said Jennifer Gelber, an OB-GYN at Paoli Hospital and resident of Berwyn.
Some health experts doubt the tests’ reliability. Philadelphia Health Commissioner Thomas Farley said the city is not recommending antibody tests.
“Even for those tests that are reliable we don’t know yet how to interpret the results,” Farley said. “I’m concerned that people will get a test and then believe that they are immune and not wear a mask."
In New Jersey, Murphy announced 1,759 new cases, bringing the total to 137,085, and an additional 166 dead, raising the loss of life to 9,116.
Cape May County officials have developed a 35-page plan for reopening towns and beaches by June 1 — but on Saturday acknowledged that Murphy will have final say. The approach includes opening beaches, boardwalks, indoor dining, and retail shopping by June 1, while maintaining social distancing and other safety measures. It also recommends allowing outdoor dining and bar service on May 26 — the day after Memorial Day — and curbside pickup at retail establishments as early as Monday.
The mayors of Ocean City, Sea Isle City, and Upper Township said Saturday they had opened beaches there for exercise and activities like surfing and fishing.
But they said they were still prohibiting sunbathing, sitting in chairs, congregating in groups, playing group sports, and bathing.
“We want everyone to understand that our submission is a proposal," said Freeholder Vice-Director Len Desiderio, "not yet the plan.”
Staff writers Andrew Seidman, Susan Snyder, and Vinny Vella contributed to this article.