Top 10 Florida COVID-19 Stories Of The Year
MIAMI (CBSMiami) – The year 2020 was dominated by the coronavirus pandemic. It's a year we will not forget.
For many, it changed the way we lived our lives.
Wearing masks in public, social distancing, restaurants closed except for take-out or delivery and then reopened, hospitality industry workers taking a major hit, curfews, and students embracing distance learning.
Some of CBMiami.com's most-viewed stories of the year involving the pandemic include more than a dozen friends testing positive for coronavirus after a night out at a reopened bar, Governor Ron DeSantis reportedly ordering health officials not to discuss COVID-19 with the public, and steps to take so you don't contract it in the first place.
Here on the top 10 coronavirus pandemic stories on CBSMiami.com.
10. Florida Reports Highest Coronavirus Numbers In Past Two Months (10/17/2020)
Florida reported its highest coronavirus numbers in two months with another uptick in new infections Saturday, surging to more than 4,000 cases.
9. Florida Surgeon General: Coronavirus Could Force Residents To Continue Social Distancing For A Year
The state's top public health officer said Florida residents could be social distancing and wearing facial coverings for a year because of the coronavirus.
8. Johnson & Johnson: 'Temporary Shortage' Of Tylenol In Some Areas Of US
It's becoming a rare sight on some pharmacy shelves — Tylenol. The drug is selling out or is being rationed in many stores because of a belief that it might be the best way to fight COVID-19.
7. Miami Coronavirus Update: Publix Supermarket Employee Tests Positive For COVID-19
Publix Supermarket has confirmed one of its workers tested positive for the coronavirus. The employee worked at the store located at 9420 SW 56 Street in Miami.
6. Coronavirus Cases Are Spiking & Experts Say Florida Has 'All The Markings Of Next Epicenter'
Ten states, including Florida, saw a record number of new COVID-19 cases this week, and experts say the Sunshine State could be the next epicenter of the pandemic. Florida has "all the markings of the next large epicenter of coronavirus transmission," according to projections from a model by scientists at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania.
In the midst of this pandemic, a Sun-Sentinel investigation found that Gov. Ron DeSantis and his administration has been misleading the public about the crisis from the beginning. According to thousands of pages of documents and over 50 interviews conducted by the Sun-Sentinel, the governor and his team have done it through misinformation and spin as well as by muzzling local health officials across the state.
4. Washing Your Hands Is Best Defense Against Coronavirus, Not A Facemask
Officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say the spread of the coronavirus in the U.S. is inevitable but there are steps you can take now to prepare.
Gov. Ron DeSantis is acknowledging for the first time that the state unemployment system was deliberately designed to frustrate people, making it so difficult for them to apply for benefits that they would give up and just not get paid. The revelation came during DeSantis' one-on-one with CBS4's Jim DeFede, which was the governor's first sit-down interview since the COVID-19 pandemic started.
2. Publix Supermarkets Changing Store Hours To Close At 8 PM
Publix Supermarkets have announced they are changing their store hours to close earlier starting Saturday until further notice. In a statement, the company said the earlier closing time "give our store teams time to conduct additional preventive sanitation and restock product on shelves."
1. 16 Friends Test Positive For Coronavirus After Night Out At Florida Bar
A group of 16 friends all tested positive for coronavirus after a night out at a recently reopened Florida bar. The group had gathered for a friend's birthday at Lynch's Irish Pub in Jacksonville Beach on June 6, the same weekend bars reopened in Florida. The bar was crowded, and no one was wearing masks.
