Morning Briefing Dec. 8, 2020: Michigan COVID restrictions extended, UK giving 1st doses of vaccine

Here are this morning’s top stories

Empty dining area at restaurant

What to know today 🌅

Michigan COVID restrictions extended through Dec. 20

Michigan’s COVID restrictions will remain as is for at least another 12 days, the governor and state health officials announced Monday.

The restrictions were set to expire at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 8. Now the order remains in effect through Dec. 20. From there, the state plans to reopen certain sectors in phases. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer stressed she believes it will be a priority to safely reopen high schools to in-person learning.

For now, restaurants, bars, casinos, bowling alleys, hockey rinks and more services remain shut down.

Here’s what you need to know about the restrictions right now.

Then, read about what’s expected after the restrictions are lifted: Michigan plots slow reopen with improvements in 3 key COVID metrics


Trending 📈

🚚 🚚 🚚 Trucks lined up outside U.S. Postal Service Mail Distribution Center

Video from outside the U.S. Postal Service Mail Distribution Center in Allen Park shows trucks lined up outside the facility waiting to drop off mail to be processed.

Local 4′s Hank Winchester spoke with several drivers who said they’ve never seen delays like this before. See the story here.

💉 UK giving 1st doses of COVID-19 vaccine

Across the Atlantic Ocean today, people are receiving a COVID-19 vaccine. The AP reports the U.K. is the first Western country to start a mass vaccination program after British regulators last week authorized the use of a COVID-19 shot developed by U.S. drugmaker Pfizer and Germany’s BioNTech. U.S. and European Union regulators may approve the vaccine in coming days, fueling a global immunization effort.

🧊 ‘A68′ iceberg the size of Delaware threatens South Georgia Island

A giant iceberg the size of the U.S. state of Delaware is floating toward the sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia, raising fears it could indirectly endanger young wildlife.

The giant iceberg, named A68, has been floating north since it broke off from the Larsen C ice shelf in July 2017, the Antarctic Survey said. Paul Gross has a look at how far the ice has traveled.


Coronavirus in Michigan 🦠

The number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in Michigan has risen to 404,386 as of Monday, including 9,947 deaths, state officials report.

Monday’s update includes both Sunday and Monday data, totaling 9,350 new cases and an additional 93 deaths over the last two days.

New COVID-19 cases are slowing but deaths continue to rise in Michigan. Testing has remained steady, with more than 46,000 diagnostic tests reported per day, but the positive rate has increased to more than 14% over the last week. Hospitalizations have increased steadily for the last five weeks, including upticks in critical care and ventilator use.

Michigan’s 7-day moving average for daily cases was 6,981 on Sunday, slightly lower than one week ago. The 7-day death average was 115, the highest since April. The state’s fatality rate is 2.5%. The state also reports “active cases,” which were listed at 187,400, near its highest mark on record. More than 197,000 have recovered in Michigan.

Here’s a look at more of the data:


Weather forecast: Getting closer to that big warm-up


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