Summer COVID surge | Morning Newsletter
And lacking curfew crackdown.
The Morning Newsletter
Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter
Welcome to a new week, Philly. Following a stormy Sunday, today is forecast to bring some sun alongside showers and thunderstorms before 11 p.m.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now considers COVID to be endemic — a disease with a constant and predictable presence. As the virus spikes in the Philadelphia region and elsewhere, our main read breaks down what that means for public health.
And despite a major political push to crack down on nuisance businesses via an 11 p.m. curfew, the city has yet to enforce the more restrictive operating hours.
Read on for these stories and more.
— Julie Zeglen (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
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COVID is surging in Philly and beyond, with infections “growing or likely growing” in 32 states as of early August.
Status update: The unexpected spike in cases comes as the CDC has begun calling COVID an endemic. Yet some epidemiologists don’t think the virus fits the definition because it’s still relatively unpredictable, as opposed to recurring at a certain time per year.
Preventing the spread: No matter what it’s called, local public health experts recommend taking precautions: Get the latest vaccine when it’s available, stay home if you’re sick, practice good hygiene, and consider masking in public.
Notable quote: “Endemic doesn’t mean benign. It’s still a serious disease,” the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania’s chief medical officer told The Inquirer.
Earlier this year, the city passed legislation enacting 11 p.m. curfews for so-called nuisance businesses in pockets of Kensington and North Philadelphia. The curfews apply to smoke shops, takeout restaurants, and bodegas, many of which operate slot-like casino games that attract casual gamblers at all hours.
Months in, zero citations have been issued.
“We’ve been watching who continues to operate, and we know who the bad actors are,” said Councilmember Quetcy Lozada, who helped write the legislation. “We’re ready to go.”
What you should know today
A federal judge has ordered Philadelphia to pay $25 million into a dedicated fund and to take urgent action to address staffing shortages at the city’s jails.
Kamala Harris and Tim Walz tour Western Pennsylvania one day before the Democratic National Convention begins.
Who is Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. Austin Davis? Meet the 34-year-old Pittsburgh-area native, who makes his national debut tonight on stage at the DNC.
The DNC invited Philly-area influencers to attend, but some say they had to decline, citing high travel costs and short notice.
Following University of the Arts’ June shutdown, nearly 750 former students have enrolled at “teach-out” partner schools. Tiny Moore College of Art & Design, the last art-centered college in Philly, is absorbing 114 UArts students — and growing by a third in one semester.
The 2024-25 academic year begins for Philadelphia School District students next Monday. Superintendent Tony B. Watlington Sr. wants parents to know about the new English curriculum, year-round school, improved customer service, and more.
The Wallingford-Swarthmore school board is parting ways with its superintendent, Wagner Marseille, who has faced mounting criticism from parents over his management style.
Their home country is in upheaval thousands of miles away, but Bangladeshis in Philadelphia remain optimistic.
🧠 Trivia time
Business license applications for the recreational marijuana industry open today in which state?
A) Pennsylvania
B) Delaware
C) Maryland
D) Virginia
Think you know? Check your answer.
What we’re...
🦮 Slobbering for: Tickets to a Trenton Goldens game.
🍕 Trying: The giant pies at Manayunk’s Pizza Jawn before they’re gone.
🥕 Picking: Organic local produce from Philly food pantries, courtesy of community gardeners.
🧩 Unscramble the anagram
The Philly venue where The Boss is playing this week.
BACKSPIN KAREN ZIT
Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here. Cheers to Eileen Cleary, who solved Sunday’s anagram: Travis Kelce. The Kansas City football player and brother of retired Eagle Jason Kelce appeared in a teaser for the new FX show Grotesquerie … and the internet isn’t pleased.
Photo of the day
Your “only in Philly” story
📬 Think back to the night that changed your life that could only happen in Philly, a true example of the Philly spirit, the time you finally felt like you belonged in Philly if you’re not a lifer, something that made you fall in love with Philly all over again — or proud to be from here if you are. Then email it to us for a chance to be featured in the Monday edition of this newsletter.
This “only in Philly” story comes from reader Barbara Cummings, who recalls summer memories from growing up in North Philadelphia:
The wet leather was heavy as it covered the whole back of the horse-drawn wagon to keep the ice from melting on hot summer days. With big black tongs around a huge block of ice, the gentleman would come up our white marble front steps and yell, “Yice-man!” then proceed to our icebox for delivery. We had to hurry to grab a wonderful chunk of summer relief from the back of his wagon.
Then came the man pushing the big wagon and yelping, “Old newspaper wanted!” Stacked high, it looked heavy.
But the grand visitor to my street was a small truck with a sidecar called The Whip. For oh-so-short minutes, around we’d go-a cooling — respite from summer’s heat. I loved the feeling of my long, long pigtails hitting against the wall as The Whip drove around. Not only did the screams of the children and the laughter float down the street, but so did the music that he played — and it was all of the new music called “rock and roll!”
👋 Thanks for starting your day with The Inquirer. Have an excellent Monday.
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