Monday, February 22, 2021
With 1,507 new cases reported today, the total number of Arizona’s confirmed novel coronavirus cases topped 809,000 as of Monday, Feb. 22, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.
Pima County, which reported 138 new cases today, has seen 108,479 of the state’s 809,474 confirmed cases.
As the national death toll topped a half-million people, a total of 15,502 Arizonans have died after contracting COVID-19, including 2,149 deaths in Pima County, according to the Feb. 22 report.
The number of hospitalized COVID cases statewide has declined in recent weeks, with 1,590 coronavirus patients in the hospital as of Feb. 21. That’s less than a third of the number hospitalized at the peak of the winter surge, which reached 5,082 on Jan. 11. The summer peak was 3,517, which was set on July 13, 2020. The subsequent lowest number of hospitalized COVID patients was 468, set on Sept. 27, 2020.
A total of 1,117 people visited emergency rooms on Feb. 21 with COVID symptoms, less than half of the record high of 2,341 set on Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2020. That number had peaked during the summer wave at 2,008 on July 7, 2020; it hit a subsequent low of 653 on Sept. 28, 2020.
Friday, February 19, 2021
With 1,918 new cases reported today, the total number of Arizona’s confirmed novel coronavirus cases topped 804,116 as of Friday, Feb. 19, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.
Pima County, which reported 211 new cases today, has seen 107,793 of the state’s 802,198 confirmed cases.
With 145 new deaths reported today, a total of 15,421 Arizonans have died after contracting COVID-19, including 2,144 deaths in Pima County, according to the Feb. 19 report.
The number of hospitalized COVID cases statewide has declined in recent weeks, with 1,738 coronavirus patients in the hospital as of Feb. 18. That’s fewer than half the number hospitalized at the peak of the winter surge, which reached 5,082 on Jan. 11. The summer peak was 3,517, which was set on July 13, 2020. The subsequent lowest number of hospitalized COVID patients was 468, set on Sept. 27, 2020.
Tuesday, February 16, 2021
Monday, February 15, 2021
With the fourth week in a row of declining COVID-19 cases in Pima County, Arizona has evolved from a state of “crisis” to one of “elevated risk,” according to Dr. Joe Gerald, a University of Arizona professor who creates weekly coronavirus epidemiology reports based on Arizona Department of Health Services data.
According to Gerald’s latest report, the week ending Feb. 7 saw a 35% decrease in coronavirus cases from the week prior.
The amount of COVID-19 patients in the state’s general ward beds decreased by 25% the week of Feb. 12 from the week before, while ICU bed usage dropped 17%, according to Gerald.
“With continued improvements being forecast over the next 4 weeks, hospital capacity is adequate to meet Arizona’s most critical needs,” the professor wrote in the report. “Nevertheless, it will be many months before the backlog of non-COVID care can be fully addressed.”
In Pima County, the week ending Feb. 7 saw a 33% drop from the previous week, Gerald reports.
Furthermore, for the first time in 2021, two of the indicators on Pima County’s COVID-19 progress report, which tracks key epidemiological factors to make recommendations to business schools, have improved.
Adequate hospital capacity and timely case investigation metrics have moved from the “not met” to “progress” category.
Timely case investigation tracks how long it takes for the county’s case investigators to reach an individual who’s tested positive COVID-19 after they’re diagnosed.
Cases over two consecutive weeks, percent positivity for the virus and the predominance of COVID-19 like illness remain in the “criteria not met” category.
Although hospitals are seeing a slight reprieve, they remain under pressure, according to Pima County Health Department Director Dr. Theresa Cullen.
Tempe police responded to a 911 call on Jan. 15, 2019, about a suspected burglary in an alley. Officer Joseph Jaen arrived to find Antonio Arce, sitting in a truck with a handgun.
Jaen called to Arce, 14, who turned and ran. “Let me see your hands!” Jaen yelled, but Arce continued running, and Jaen shot and killed him.
In body camera footage taken minutes after the shots, Jaen can be heard saying “It’s a (expletive deleted) toy gun.” It was, indeed, an airsoft replica of a Colt 1911 pistol, with its orange tip still intact.
“That’s supposed to alert the public, as well as the police, to the fact that this is not a real gun,” said Daniel Ortega Jr., a lawyer for Arce’s family. Airsoft guns use springs or compressed air to fire nonlethal plastic projectiles.
The family sued Tempe, later settling for $2 million. Jaen was granted accidental disability retirement in January. He did not face charges from the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office.
Friday, February 12, 2021
Wednesday, February 10, 2021
It's a sad fact of life: Many scammers prey on lonely people, so the FBI's Phoenix division has issued a bulletin warning about "romance scams" ahead of this Valentine's Day on Sunday, Feb. 14.
Also called "confidence fraud," these scams involve a criminal adopting a fake identity to gain someone's trust, then using their phony relationship to steal from the victim. According to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, 560 Arizonans reported collected losses of more than $12 million in connection with confidence fraud/romance scams in 2020.
These scam artists are present on almost every dating and social media site, and often begin interactions attempting to earn trust, but often never actually meet in person. According to the FBI, these scam artists often say they are in the building or construction industry and are engaged in projects outside the U.S. That makes it easier to avoid meeting in person—and more plausible when they ask for money for a medical emergency or unexpected legal fee.
The following tips may be helpful to consider if you develop a romantic relationship with someone you meet online:
- • Research the person’s photo and profile using online searches to see if the material has been used elsewhere.
- • Never provide your financial information, loan money, nor allow your bank accounts to be used for transfers of funds.
- • Never send money to anyone you don’t personally know.
- • If you are traveling to a foreign country to meet someone, check the State Department’s Travel Advisories beforehand (travel.state.gov), provide your itinerary to family and friends, and do not travel alone if possible.
- • Beware if the individual seems too perfect or quickly asks you to leave a dating service or Facebook to go “offline.”
- • Beware if the individual attempts to isolate you from friends and family or requests inappropriate photos or financial information that could later be used to extort you.
- • Beware if the individual promises to meet in person but then always comes up with an excuse why they can’t.
- • If you haven’t met the person after a few months - for any reason - it's wise to be suspicious.
- • If you plan to meet someone in person you have met online, meet in a public place and let someone know where you will be and what time you should return home.
For more information on romance scams, visit here.
Tuesday, February 9, 2021
