It’s Thursday, July 16th – and NBC 6 has the top
stories for the day.
No. 1 – Wednesday was the last day for Miami-Dade Public Schools parents to fill out a survey asking what modality of learning they would prefer for their kids in the fall, physically in classrooms or staying at home for distance learning.
Superintendent Alberto
Carvalho says everyone acknowledges classroom instruction is far superior to
remote instruction, but says students won’t be coming back to campus until the
COVID-19 numbers improve substantially. More than half of Miami-Dade parents,
about 55%, said on the survey they want their kids physically in schools.
Carvalho said the feasibility of students and teachers actually being in
classrooms depends on the advice of infectious disease experts.
No.
2 – Several months into the pandemic and the field hospital at the Miami Beach
Convention Center remains empty.
The site was designed to treat COVID-19 patients. Instead the facility will provide area hospitals with hospital beds and medical staff if needed. NBC 6 has learned county officials expressed concerns to state officials about the field hospital accepting patients because the convention center is an a hurricane evacuation zone. For more on what other concerns they have, click here for a report from NBC 6’s Carlos Suarez.
No. 3 – A South Florida man is in shock after he believed he was turned away
from donating plasma due to his sexuality.
After recovering from COVID-19, Jorge Diaz said he wanted to help others. So, he attended a blood drive on Sunday to donate his convalescent plasma. Diaz believes he was rejected because of a section of the questionnaire that asked if he had sex with another man in the last three months. He answered, yes. Diaz is a gay man in a long-term relationship. To here what he has to say and what you need to know before donating blood or plasma, click here for a report from NBC 6’s Laura Rodriguez.
No.
4 – It’s an unusual bond sending out a warning to a section of South Florida –
inmates and officers are joining hands to say the growing number of COVID cases
at the federal prison can spill over into the community.
The numbers from the federal prison here in South Florida show that the number of cases here has more than doubled in the last six days, and the families and the correctional officers are saying that unless there’s some real action taken by the Federal Bureau of Prisons – the hospitals and the community around are going to be severely impacted. Click here for a story you’ll see Only on 6 from NBC 6 investigator Willard Shepard.
No.
5 – Three women were arrested after deputies say they attacked airline employees
at a South Florida airport in an incident that was caught on camera.
Broward Sheriff’s deputies responded to a disturbance Tuesday night at a Spirit Airlines gate inside Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport’s terminal four. It is unclear what sparked the violence, but deputies said the women got upset after their flight to Philadelphia was delayed Tuesday night. Cell phone video shows the group attacking airline employees, hurling various items and then rushing behind the counter. Click here for the wild video in a report from NBC 6’s Amanda Plasencia.
No. 6 – Weatherwise, South Florida will see rain chances pick up slightly Thursday ahead of what looks to be a very wet weekend for many areas. Keep your NBC 6 app handy for push alerts on any severe weather as well as First Alert Doppler 6000.
