Officials reported 986 known new COVID-19 cases and 42 deaths on Wednesday. That’s the highest number of daily deaths reported since the outbreak began. There now have been 6,980 known infections and 141 deaths statewide.
This comes a day after Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said he’s extending his stay-at-home order through April 30 as part of the state’s effort to slow the spread of the new coronavirus. The extension, which Pritzker intends to sign today, will keep schools closed until the end of the month.
As the virus continues to spread, the Tribune is keeping a running list of Chicago-area closings and cancellations, asking experts to answer your questions about COVID-19, tracking cases across the state and memorializing those who have died in the Chicago area.
Here are the latest updates Wednesday on the new coronavirus in the Chicago area and Illinois:
9 p.m.: Morton Arboretum closing to public amid virus concerns
The Morton Arboretum is joining the list of outdoor spaces closing to the public to fight the spread of the coronavirus.
The 1,700-acre site in west suburban Lisle will close starting Thursday through April 30, according to the arboretum’s website. The closure “is to ensure social distancing in support of public health.”
Special events, educational programs and field trips are also canceled through April 30. Arboretum representatives will contact anyone registered for canceled programs or events to process refunds, the website says.
The west-suburban outdoor escape offering hiking paths, scenic drives and giant trolls was one of the last nature-themed attractions to remain open, as state parks, the Lincoln Park Zoo, the Chicago Botanic Garden and the city’s lakefront shutdown in recent weeks. — Morgan Greene
7:30 p.m.: When will the coronavirus outbreak peak in Illinois?
Health experts say a wave of COVID-19 cases is likely in the coming weeks or months, but exactly when that wave will hit — and how big it will be — remains a matter of debate.
The Tribune has found at least two models that produced significantly different predictions on when the outbreak will peak: as soon as two weeks or as long as 1 1/2 months from now.
Add to that the predictions of public officials, such as Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who said Wednesday that the virus was expected to peak in Chicago in “mid- to late April.” The state has offered a similar, broad time frame.
Neither the city nor state has responded to Tribune requests for specific details on their predictions. University of Illinois researchers working with the state told the Tribune they were uncomfortable releasing their most recent projections for fear of misleading the public, given all the caveats and uncertainties.
Modelers say their work involves multiple guesses, ranging from just how infectious the virus is to how successfully people will keep their distance from one another.
COVID-19 projections are also complicated by the lack of large-scale testing, meaning researchers do not know how many people are infected. Many residents are not able to obtain a test without severe symptoms or meeting other strict criteria.
“Again, what’s really sort of unfortunate — to me one of the most unfortunate things about all of this — is there just hasn’t been enough testing,” said Yale School of Management professor Edward Kaplan, who’s worked on some national modeling and spoke to the Tribune last week.
Making it harder still, researchers have said, is how dangerous the virus is for certain groups of people, including the elderly and those with chronic conditions, and having to account for unique scenarios in each part of the country.
That said, researchers have tackled the challenge and released projections. Here are some.
6:15 p.m.: Some Latino neighborhoods are falling behind in census participation amid pandemic
A video posted on Facebook shows a small boy retrieving a letter marked “Census 2020.”
“Make a difference in your community,” the video tells viewers in Spanish as Cesar Nuñez explains to a small boy and girl that the U.S. Census Bureau wants them to fill out the census.
Nuñez, the director of organizing at Enlace Chicago, made the video in his home after the organization scrapped door knocking and a Loteria-themed census night in Little Village because of COVID-19. On census day, April 1, the group planned a different kind of outreach push, joining a caravan driving through the Latino neighborhood hoping residents would see messages about the census.
In Illinois, nearly 40% of households had filled out the census, a higher rate than the national response of 36.2%, according to the Census Bureau. In Chicago, the response rate Tuesday was 29.5%, which is a slightly higher rate than that of Los Angeles and about the same as Houston.
But households in some of the city’s Latino neighborhoods, like Little Village, aren’t participating as quickly as other parts of Chicago, according to a map of census data compiled by the City University of New York. Organizers and experts say these communities could be lagging both because of a digital divide and because of a misconception that the census will ask who is a citizen. Read more here. —Elvia Malagón
5:27 p.m: 3 new coronavirus deaths in DuPage County include 2 from nursing homes
Three more DuPage County residents died from the coronavirus, including residents of two nursing homes, officials announced Wednesday, bringing total fatalities in the county to 13.
The victims included a woman in her 90s who lived at a long-term care facility in Carol Stream; a woman in her 70s who lived at a long-term care facility in Elmhurst; and a woman in her 60s who lived in Roselle, the DuPage County Health Department reported. All the patients had underlying medical conditions. Nine of the 13 DuPage deaths have been connected to nursing homes, including 6 from the Chateau Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Willowbrook and one from Brookdale Senior Living in Burr Ridge. —Robert McCoppin
5:22 p.m.: Coronavirus suspected in death of newspaper publisher from Tinley Park
Newspaper publisher Mansour Tadros, of Tinley Park, was a leader in the south suburban Arab American community who was constantly taking phone calls and greeting visitors.
“His phone would ring 100 to 120 times a day,” his son, Fadi, recalled. “We had to cancel our home phone because it got so out of hand.”
Tadros died Saturday, March 28 of a suspected case of COVID-19, his son said. He was 70. Read more here. —Ted Slowik
5:20 p.m.: North Central College to allow residence hall to be used by city employees who need to self-quarantine
A North Central College residence hall will be used as a place for Naperville public safety employees to self-quarantine during the coronavirus pandemic as the need arises, officials said.
North Central’s Geiger Hall will be available for the city’s public safety personnel, including police officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians and telecommunicators as they continue to work the front lines of the pandemic. Employees who need to isolate themselves due to exposure or possible exposure to COVID-19 or need housing closer to their place of work can use the accommodations, according to a joint news release from the city and North Central. Read more here. —Erin Hegarty
5:17 p.m.: 13 additional members of the Chicago Police Department test positive for coronavirus
Sixty-four Chicago police officers now have tested positive for COVID-19, according to a statement from the police department. Of the 64, 62 are sworn officers and two are civilian members of the department.
The rising numbers come after about 6 percent of the entire department was on sick leave Monday, as the coronavirus pandemic continued to have an impact on city operations.
More than 800 Chicago police employees — most of them sworn officers, though some civilians as well — were out sick Monday with wide-ranging ailments, but the increased numbers also were likely due to employees who took time off for precautionary measures due to the coronavirus, police officials said. The department has more than 13,000 sworn officers and several hundred more civilian employees.
As of Monday, 49 officers had tested positive for the coronavirus. Only a handful have had to be hospitalized, but at least one was reported in critical condition, Chicago police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said Monday. —Rosemary Sobol
5:10 p.m.: Stresses of having a baby in NICU increase for parents
Niama Nash’s daily routine revolves around hospital visits.
For Nash, the mother of a baby who was born prematurely and is currently in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, the coronavirus pandemic is always on her mind.
“I’m scared. Absolutely,” Nash said. “I have a lot of anxiety. I try to keep it together and calm because I can still see my son.”
When Nash enters Advocate Children’s Hospital in Oak Lawn, her temperature is taken and displayed on a sticker she wears for the length of her visit.
She slips her cellphone and credit cards into a machine to be sterilized.
And before she enters the NICU to visit her son, Braylon, she takes off her outer layer of clothes, stashes them in a storage bag and pulls on a clean gown. She washes her hands and applies more sanitizer.
“I see people outside without gloves, without masks, being comfortable, and that’s just something I’m not going to do,” Nash said. “I’m not taking any risks.”
Nash is just one of the many parents of babies born prematurely or with a health condition that requires a stay in the NICU. As the number of COVID-19 cases in the Chicago area increases, hospitals have been forced to make tough decisions about how to keep their tiniest patients safe as they grow and develop enough to journey home. Read more here. —Genevieve Bookwalter
4:55 p.m.: Lightfoot, alderman urge Chicagoans not to head outside once weather warms up
Despite a stretch of cooler, rainy spring weather in recent days, Chicago police and elected officials are still engaged in a high-stakes game of whack-a-mole with residents congregating outside in neighborhoods around the city.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot has shifted from scolding scofflaws and closing the lakefront last week to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus, to a cautiously congratulatory tone in the past few days toward residents who she says are overwhelmingly complying with the state’s “stay inside” rules.
But with warmer days coming up, there’s concern stir-crazy Chicagoans will take to the streets again in big numbers.
Lightfoot urged people Wednesday not to give in to the local compulsion to head outdoors as soon as it hits 50 degrees.
“As the weather warms up, I know how I am,” Lightfoot said. “After a long winter, I’m ready to get outside and enjoy the greatness of this city that really comes into full bloom when the weather is warm. But for now, and at least through April 30th, people have to keep doing what they’ve been doing, which is staying at home to save lives.” Read more here. —John Byrne
4:47 p.m.: Everyone knows hand sanitizer and toilet paper are quarantine essentials. So, apparently, are jigsaw puzzles, bread machines and paint.
Kari DeHaven has been baking since she was a kid, learning from her grandma.
But she’d never tried sourdough until a new work-from-home routine and inspiration from social media convinced her to give it a shot. Since Friday, she’s made two loaves and some sourdough waffles.
“One great thing with baking is it gives you a little bit of a sense of control. In the chaotic world we’re living in, it’s soothing to be working with my hands in the kitchen,” said DeHaven, 26, who’s staying with family in Sycamore. “Touching, tasting, utilizing all my senses helps ground me.”
She’s not alone. So many people have been firing up their ovens that consumers say flour and yeast can be tough to find.
Faced with orders to hunker down at home in an attempt to slow the spread of the new coronavirus, consumers stocked up on canned beans and cleaning products. But stores and analysts said shoppers also snapped up items that aren’t obvious essentials, like electric skillets, house paint and puzzles.
Families with parents working from home while kids are out of school need ways to fill the time. So do people social distancing while living alone. Read more here. —Lauren Zumbach
4:45 p.m.: CPS consolidates meal pickup sites during school closure
When spring break begins Monday, Chicago Public Schools will consolidate meal distribution to fewer than one-fourth of schools, but any child can get meals from any school that’s offering them.
From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Thursday next week, families can get grab-and-go meals at 136 school sites across the city from Monday–Thursday, 9 a.m.–1 p.m. Sites are listed on the district’s website. No sites will be open on Good Friday.
Starting April 13 — the first day of official remote learning — the district is moving to a consolidated plan, through which meals will be provided at the 276 schools that have been busiest.
“By consolidating sites, we will have more staff available to support each school — which will help ensure meal sites do not need to close in the event of staff absences,” CPS said in a statement. “Lunchroom staff who are not working or assigned to a meal site will continue to be paid and be able to stay home and practice social distancing. Additionally, by reducing the number of meal sites, we will also be able to reduce the number of principals and assistant principals who are overseeing meal distribution each day, which will provide additional time for principals to support remote learning.” —Hannah Leone
4:23 p.m.: National Guard sends about 30 service members to Stateville Correctional Center
The Illinois National Guard has sent about 30 service members, primarily medical technicians, to Stateville Correctional Center to help space out inmates and do health checks of people entering the prison, as the number inmates and staff members who have tested positive for the new coronavirus has grown.
Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said Wednesday that 127 people associated with the prison have been tested for coronavirus, and of the 80 tests that have come back, 36 have been positive. Results are not in for the remaining tests. Of those, 19 people are hospitalized in different locations within the state, and others are still being monitored within the correctional center.
The National Guard’s role is primarily “augmenting that staff that’s been kind of depleted the last several days due to the flu and COVID-19,” said National Guard Brig. Gen. Richard Neely, the adjutant general for Illinois.
The service members are setting up tents and helping to separate out inmates more widely at Stateville to provide more distancing, and to “quarantine them off into a different area in the prison,” Neely said.
National Guard medical technicians are also assisting with health checks of vendors, employees and other visitors before they enter the prison, Neely said. —Jamie Munks
3:45 p.m.: Lightfoot says Chicagoans must ‘stay diligent’ or risk erasing progress
Hours after Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Chicago’s number of coronavirus cases are “starting to trend in the right direction,” she issued a stark warning that the city’s COVID-19 pandemic is far from over and any progress made fighting the disease could be jeopardized if people stop following strict stay-at-home rules.
“I don’t want anybody to take from this conversation that the light’s at the end of the tunnel. It’s a pinprick, not a light,” Lightfoot said at a Wednesday afternoon news conference. “We’ve got to stay diligent. Stay at home. Save lives. Continue to do the things that we’ve been preaching for the last two weeks. Otherwise, any progress that we’ve made, will be evaporated.” Read more here. —Gregory Pratt
3:10 p.m.: Nurses fear patients from Stateville prison may overwhelm Joliet hospitals
A wave of COVID-19 patients could strain resources at Joliet-area hospitals treating inmates and workers from the Stateville Correctional Center, a nurses union warned Wednesday.
The Illinois Nurses Association said Wednesday that 12 correctional center employees have tested positive for the novel coronavirus and 187 staff members are awaiting results. Also, 14 inmates have tested positive and 77 have shown symptoms, the union said.
A spokeswoman for the Illinois Department of Corrections did not immediately respond to a request to confirm those numbers Wednesday afternoon. Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Tuesday that one inmate from the Joliet facility has died.
The nurses at Amita Health Saint Joseph Medical Center Joliet are “highly concerned about the hospital being overrun and not having enough staff to care for the patients,” said Alice Johnson, executive director of the Illinois Nurses Association.
Amita spokesman Tim Nelson said in an email, “We are staffed appropriately in all patient care areas, thanks to the strength and dedication of our nurses, technicians, environmental services workers and supply chain associates.” The Joliet hospital has 480 beds.
The National Guard is coming in to assist with medical care at Stateville this week, setting up tents and cots in the gymnasium with about 30 medics assigned, said Lt. Col. Bradford Leighton with the Illinois National Guard. They are going to be doing routine health screenings and will have about 30 cots for use by inmates, he said.
Patients from Stateville may also be sent to other area hospitals, including Morris Hospital, Silver Cross Hospital in New Lenox, Riverside Medical Center in Kankakee and Amita Health St. Mary’s Hospitals Kankakee, said Rep. Larry Walsh Jr., D-Joliet.
“The good news is, there is help,” Johnson said. “What we don’t know right now is the extent of that help. … We don’t know if the capacity will meet the demand.” —Lisa Schencker and Stacy St. Clair
2:44 p.m.: Known cases of the new coronavirus jump by 986, including 42 more deaths
Known cases of the new coronavirus in Illinois jumped by 986 including 42 more deaths, the state Department of Public Health said Wednesday.
That brings the total known statewide case count to 6,980 and the number of deaths to 141 since the outbreak began.
The known cases of coronavirus are now spread across 56 of the state’s 102 counties, with Massac and Vermilion counties now reporting cases. The majority of the deaths reported Wednesday – 34 – were in Cook County, while there were two deaths in DuPage County. There was one death each in Carroll, Kane, Lake, Sangamon, Will and Winnebago counties reported on Wednesday.
llinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike continued to urge social distancing as a way to curb the spread of the virus, a day after Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced he was extending the statewide stay-at-home order through the end of April.
“It is your behavior, it is my behavior, it’s everyone’s behavior that will turn this tide,” Ezike said. “We will see an end to this pandemic.” —Jamie Munks
2:10 p.m.: Cook County medical examiner searching for warehouse as it braces for more coronavirus deaths
First, the refrigerated semitrailer appeared in the morgue’s parking lot, ready to house up to 30 bodies of people believed to have died from the coronavirus.
Now the Cook County medical examiner’s office is looking for a refrigerated warehouse with a capacity for up to 1,000 bodies — a search unlike any undertaken by the office in recent history.
“We want to be prepared for any number of fatalities,” Dr. Ponni Arunkumar, chief medical examiner, told the Tribune. “For more than 200 cases, I think a separate location is easier to work with and more respectful.”
As of Tuesday, the county’s death toll from the respiratory virus had reached 71. A statewide projection for Illinois predicts deaths could peak at 88 per day by mid-April, according to the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. Read more here. —Alice Yin
2 p.m.: From meal delivery to wellness checks, educators try to keep family lifelines afloat while schools are closed
Even under normal circumstances, struggling families often rely on their neighborhood schools for all kinds of support, from meals, care and counseling for their children to health care referrals.
Now, with school buildings closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, teachers, counselors and administrators are finding ways to keep those services available and stay in contact with families. Read more here. —Karen Ann Cullotta and Hannah Leone
1:38 p.m.: Chicago grants rent deferral to CHA tenants
Residents of Chicago Housing Authority-owned buildings can wait to pay April rent until the state’s stay-at-home order is lifted, officials said Wednesday.
“We are working to provide as much support as possible to resident[s] during these very challenging times,” said James Bebley, acting CEO of the housing authority, in a news relese.
The CHA will not issue late rent notices, nor does it charge late fees. Tenants will still owe April rent, but won’t have to pay until at least May 1, when the stay-at-home order is currently set to expire.
The deferral could extent beyond May 1, though, if the order is extended.
The change comes as renters across Chicago call for rent relief during the coronavirus pandemic.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot said she cannot issue a citywide rent freeze while the state’s ban on rent control remains intact, and Gov. J.B. Pritzker said he cannot overturn the ban with an executive order, compelling some tenants to threaten a rent strike.
The CHA’s temporary deferral does not apply to tenants using vouchers for privately owned housing, but the department said it will ask those property owners to be flexible with tenants who could be out of work or otherwise financially affected by the crisis. — Ariel Cheung
1:11 p.m.: City worker dies of coronavirus, Lightfoot announces
A city worker has died of coronavirus, Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced on Wednesday.
The mayor said she couldn’t provide personal details, including what department the worker was in, but said they were a long-time worker “beloved by family and co-workers.”
“The numbers we report every day are not mere statistics. They are people whose lives are forever changed,” Lightfoot said.
As of Tuesday, Illinois had recorded 5,994 known COVID-19 infections and 99 deaths statewide since the start of the outbreak. Of those cases, there have been 2,611 confirmed infections in Chicago, officials said.
Earlier in the day, during an appearance on NBC’s “Today” show, Lightfoot said the number of coronavirus cases in Chicago are “starting to trend in the right direction,” though much more work needs to be done to curb the crisis.
“What we’re also seeing is a lengthening of time between the doubling of cases. It’s too soon to make any real predictions but it seems like we’re starting to trend in the right direction. But the truth is, on our modeling, we don’t believe we’re going to reach the peak of this virus until mid- to late April,” Lightfoot said, echoing a point she previously made in a Tribune interview. “So there’s a lot more work that needs to be done.”
Officials have taken drastic actions in an attempt to enforce social distancing rules aimed at preventing the virus’ spread. Gov. J.B. Pritzker issued a statewide stay-at-home order last month requiring people to remain in their homes except for certain exceptions such as going to work or the grocery store. He has extended the order through April.
Schools around the state remain closed, and bars and restaurants are off-limits to dine-in customers. Lightfoot has shut down the lakefront and major parks. Read more here. —Gregory Pratt
12:23 p.m.: Know a business that’s still open? Chicago has received 500 complaints about nonessential firms that remain open through coronavirus pandemic
Roughly 500 complaints about nonessential businesses operating in violation of the governor’s shelter-at-home directive had been filed with the city as of Tuesday, according to Chicago’s Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot called on residents and workers to report such businesses last week.
“Some complaints are for restaurants, bars, yoga studios, hair salons and other inessential businesses, while some are for businesses such as banks and auto shops that are considered essential. We are focusing on sharing information while issuing citations for egregious and repeat offenders,” the city’s Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection spokesman Isaac Reichman said in an emailed statement.
Businesses that may not be considered “essential” could face fines up to $10,000 if they remain open.
The city is urging residents and employees to submit complaints through the 311 system. Read more here. —Abdel Jimenez
11:48 a.m.: Lightfoot blasts Trump for ‘wildly wrong’ statements, says Chicago faces a coronavirus peak but ‘starting to trend in the right direction’
The number of coronavirus cases in Chicago are “starting to trend in the right direction,” though much more work needs to be done to curb COVID-19, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Wednesday.
Lightfoot appeared on NBC’s Today show where she discussed discuss the city of Chicago’s response to coronavirus and talk up her “stay home, save lives” PSAs.
“What we’re also seeing is a lengthening of time between the doubling of cases. It’s too soon to make any real predictions but it seems like we’re starting to trend in the right direction. But the truth is, on our modeling, we don’t believe we’re going to reach the peak of this virus until mid to late April,” Lightfoot said, echoing a point she previously made in a Tribune interview. “So there’s a lot more work that needs to be done. As you know, we’ve taken some fairly drastic steps, canceled a lot of outdoor activities, issued a stay-at-home order, closed our schools. All these things we know are necessary to really save lives and we’ve launched here a local campaign called stay home, save lives, which people are having fun with, which is great.”
The city’s primary focus has been making sure local hospitals can sustain an expected surge in cases, Lightfoot said. She cited the plan to put 3,000 beds in McCormick Place, as well as hotel rooms for first responders and people who need a safe space to quarantine.
Asked about President Donald Trump’s assertion that governors have been “slow to respond,” Lightfoot said, “I will tell you, I don’t pay a lot of attention to the things that come out of the president’s mouth in his daily briefings. Many of them are not based on fact or science and they’re just wildly wrong. That’s wrong in this case.” Read more here. —Gregory Pratt
10:40 a.m.: The rent: To pay or not to pay? Amid coronavirus, that is the question for businesses across Chicago.
Ryan Tracy’s landlord offered to let Tracy pay half the April rent for his suburban beer shop up front, then spread the other half across the rest of 2020.
Kenneth Morrison told his Pilsen restaurant tenant not to worry about April rent — or any rent — until the coronavirus pandemic passes.
Dale Lewis’ landlords told him to forget any potential dispensation for his suburban restaurants: full rents were due, global health crisis or not.
In their own ways, each of those tenants or landlords navigated at least a first step in one of the thorniest issues to emerge for businesses and mortgage holders during the COVID-19 health crisis: What to do about rent? Read more here. —Josh Noel and Ryan Ori
9:15 a.m.: Cubs-Cardinals series in London on June 13-14 is officially canceled
The Cubs’ London Series against the Cardinals has been canceled, Major League Baseball announced Wednesday.
The cancellation was caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
The Cubs and Cardinals were scheduled to play two games at London Stadium on June 13-14, with the Cardinals as the home team. Read more here. —Mark Gonzales
9:12 a.m.: IHSA director still hopeful of spring high school sports amid coronavirus delays
On March 12, the IHSA announced the cancellation of the remaining state playoffs for winter sports, including the boys basketball finals in Peoria, because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Spring sports practices then were put on hold as schools throughout the state were closed until April 7. On March 25, IHSA executive director Craig Anderson sent a letter to administrators and spring sports coaches as the organization explored options to extend the season into the summer. That keeps the door open for teams to play regular-season and postseason games later this spring.
Anderson said that remains the IHSA’s position even after Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced Tuesday that the stay-at-home order had been extended through April 30. That means high school sports won’t resume until May at the earliest.
Shortly before Pritzker’s announcement, Pioneer Press contributor Dan Shalin spoke with Anderson about the IHSA’s decision-making process, the possibility of an extended shutdown and the effect of the pandemic on high school athletics, especially seniors. Read more here. —Dan Shalin
8:20 a.m.: Graduation cancellations due to coronavirus are bittersweet for first-generation grads and their families
After eight years of rigorous work and against all odds, Maria Ramirez, 27, is set to become the first doctor in her family.
The daughter of Mexican immigrants was supposed to walk the stage in May during graduation from the University of Illinois College of Medicine, finally validating her parent’s sacrifices, she said.
Ramirez, who plans to practice family medicine, ordered her cap and gown. Her parents had been preparing for the milestone and planned to invite extended family. But the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted the planned celebration. Read more here. —Laura Rodríguez Presa
8:03 a.m.: A global ‘free-for-all’ to buy and sell face masks emerges amid coronavirus battle
Global desperation to protect front-line medical workers battling the coronavirus epidemic has spurred a mad international scramble for masks and other protective gear. Governments, hospital chains, clinics and entrepreneurs are scouring the world for personal protection equipment they can buy or sell — and a new type of trader has sprung up to make that happen. Read more here. —New York Times
6:33 a.m.: Political leaders join with philanthropies to create arts and artists fund
In an attempt to boost the battered arts and cultural communities in the Land of Lincoln, the state of Illinois and the city of Chicago is joining with philanthropies to create a new emergency fund. Applications for the fund for individual artists and arts groups were to open Wednesday at a website for the fund, artsforillinois.org, according to Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s press office.
Dubbed Arts for Illinois, the fast-tracked initiative will be seeded with at least $4.5 million in unrestricted support for artists and artisans, many of whom now find themselves out of work.
It will also support nonprofit cultural organizations across the state, most of which are now bereft of income, with some staring total ruin in the face.
“We want artists to know that they have a broad base of support in Illinois,” said Gov. J.B. Pritzker in a telephone interview on Tuesday. Read more here. —Chris Jones and Tribune staff
6:25 a.m.: Teachers and students create protective gear for essential workers in coronavirus battle: ‘I realized … I have the exact skill that people are calling out for’
Troubled by a shortage of protective gear for essential workers, several Chicago-area educators are stepping up this week to create face shields for those on the front lines of the coronavirus battle.
Career and Technical Education teachers from Buffalo Grove and Wheeling high schools spent their recent spring break designing a prototype for a protective face shield that they began producing this week in their homes with 3D printers, said David Schuler, superintendent at Arlington Heights-based Township High School District 214.
The manager of Harper College’s Makerspace and Entrepreneur Center, Jeff Moy, will assist the effort using his lab’s laser cutters.
“These teachers are stepping up to save lives and flatten the curve,” Schuler said. “In all of my years as an educator, nothing has made me more proud. … They are contributing to the health and safety of the community.” Read more here. —Karen Ann Cullotta
6 a.m.: Great Lakes shipping season is underway with new precautions for sailors
As the coronavirus pandemic locked down countries and disrupted global supply chains, the Great Lakes shipping season got underway last week.
Chicago is a hub for national and international freight. More tonnage of cargo moves through the Illinois International Port District than any other port in the Great Lakes.
The shipping industry is implementing a number of safeguards, according to James Weakley, president of the Lake Carriers Association, an organization that represents 46 American vessels that move 90 million tons of cargo annually across the Great Lakes.
Companies are screening sailors before they report to work, inquiring about recent travel and contact with others. Many crews have been ordered to sanitize work stations with bleach solution and even stagger times to eat meals to maintain distance from fellow crew members. Read more here. —Tony Briscoe
5 a.m.: Maps show the suburban spread of coronavirus and some of the highest numbers are in the northern suburbs
When a Skokie couple died from the coronavirus just hours apart Saturday, the deaths illustrated not only the tragic nature of the pandemic but also its uneven spread through the suburbs.
A Tribune review of available data from counties and municipalities shows that Skokie leads suburban Cook County, with 81 reported positive results, including the deaths of the couple and two others in their 80s.
Authorities acknowledge that the level of testing remains woefully inadequate to get the true picture of the virus’s spread. And the state doesn’t publish data that tallies up positive tests by city or village.
But the Tribune’s review of information at the local level offers clues to how the pandemic is affecting different parts of the region. Find out some of what we found here. —Joe Mahr and Hal Dardick
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Tuesday, March 31
Here’s a recap of coronavirus updates in the Chicago area and Illinois from Tuesday:
Gov. J.B. Pritzker said he’s extending his statewide stay-at-home order through April 30
State officials reported 937 known new cases and 26 deaths. That’s the highest number of daily deaths reported since the outbreak began.
Pritzker’s new order means Illinois schools are now shut until May. Here’s what that means for students, parents and teachers.
Illinois might have 19,000 COVID-19 cases about a week from now, according to one analysis. But it could have been worse.
Two Chicago hospitals are participating in a global trial of an experimental anti-viral drug to treat coronavirus
From delayed weed dispensary openings to curbside pot pickup, here’s how the coronavirus is forcing the state’s marijuana industry to adapt
With their vacations canceled, irate VRBO customers are engaged in a bitter battle to get refunds
A Chicago woman boarded a cruise in Argentina a day before the U.S. warned of cruising dangers. Now she has no idea when her quarantined voyage will end.
Chicago continued to see significant decreases in major crimes during the first full week of Pritzker’s statewide stay-at-home order
The United Center has begun its new role as a storage facility for the Greater Chicago Food Depository, already housing more than 460,000 pounds of food
The Tribune interviewed about a dozen homeless people who are struggling through a crisis that threatens the services they rely on to survive. Here’s what they said.
Monday, March 30
Here’s a recap of coronavirus updates in the Chicago area and Illinois from Monday:
As the number of confirmed cases in Illinois climbed to more than 5,000, Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced the McCormick Place field hospital will have 500 beds available by week’s end
State officials reported 461 new cases, with eight more deaths
A Skokie couple who emigrated from Ukraine died just hours apart after contracting the coronavirus
A war like no other: Inside the Illinois National Guard’s unprecedented coronavirus mission
The new rapid coronavirus test from Abbott Laboratories is a “huge step forward,” but it’s still not enough to meet the need
Chicago Public Schools is aiming to deliver 100,000 computers to students as it plans to shift to remote learning — but school leaders won’t rule out longer closures
Rations of high-demand goods, shoppers in masks and reminders to keep your distance. This is the brave new world of pandemic shopping.
As some Chicagoans prepare for a rent strike, the city says a rent freeze is not possible while a state ban remains intact
With high school seniors’ lives upended by the coronavirus, universities are loosening their enrollment deadlines, but some colleges are “being stubborn”
Sunday, March 29
Here’s a recap of coronavirus updates in the Chicago area and Illinois from Sunday:
As Illinois health officials announced 18 new known deaths and 1,105 new cases of the coronavirus, Gov. J.B. Pritzker warned that the upward curve is likely to continue for weeks.
The coronavirus has prompted a crackdown on crowds in Cook County forest preserves — and more closures possible if public doesn’t comply
COVID-19 has mostly spared small-town Illinois. That could change soon.
Two Cubs game-day employees who attended a March 8 training session at Wrigley Field have tested positive
Saturday, March 28
Here’s a recap of coronavirus updates in the Chicago area and Illinois from Saturday:
Gov. J.B. Pritzker reported 13 more deaths linked to the coronavirus in Illinois, including the stunning loss of an infant. It was announced Sunday that the child was 9 months old.
Illinois health officials also confirmed 465 new cases of the coronavirus in the state
McCormick Place will be converted into Illinois’ first field hospital to handle 3,000 coronavirus patients, officials said.
Citing the need to ensure the safety of its guests and staff, the One Off Hospitality Group announced it will curtail carryout and delivery service for its restaurants
