KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, continues to spread across the world, and in Missouri and Kansas.
41 Action News is keeping track of all closings and cancellations, as well as tracking where positive coronavirus cases are located.
We are also keeping track of which metro jurisdictions are under stay at home orders for the foreseeable future, only allowing for essential business and activities.
If you are a business finding unique ways to serve our community, check our KC Open for Business Facebook group to share your ideas.
Updates on the spread of the virus and how it is affecting the metro can be found below for May 6.
9:15 p.m. | A Triumph Foods employee who contracted COVID-19 has died, according to Buchanan County's public information officer. The Buchanan County resident was in his 40s and had tested positive on April 22, according to a news release from the City of St. Joseph. He had underlying medical conditions, the release stated.
Earlier this week, final results from coronavirus testing at Triumph Foods in St. Joseph determined that 412 employees and contract workers tested positive for the virus.
9:10 p.m. | Saint Luke’s Healthcare System will roll out universal testingon Thursday for asymptomatic patients admitted across its 18 hospitals – four of which are in the Kansas City metro.
7 p.m. |Missouri will receive $66 million for child care assistance under the federal CARES Act, according to Gov. Mike Parson.
The Kansas City East/Oak Grove KOA Holiday campground is open to "leisure RV travel," according to a news release. The site's restrooms will be limited to "guests without self-contained bathrooms," according to the KOA website.
5:45 p.m. | The Kansas Department of Corrections says one staff member at the Wichita Work Release Facility has tested positive for COVID-19. An inmate first tested positive at the facility on April 12.
There are seven KDOC facilities with a confirmed case of the virus: Lansing Correctional Facility, Wichita Work Release Facility, Topeka Correctional Facility, Kansas Juvenile Correctional Complex, El Dorado Correctional Facility, Ellsworth Correctional Facility and Hutchinson Correctional Facility.
4:08 p.m. | Special Olympics Missouri has provided more details about the 2020 State Summer Games, which will be held virtually for the first time this year in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Athletes will compete in their events from their homes on May 16-18, and the ceremonies will kick off on a Facebook Live on Friday, June 5.
2:20 p.m. | Kansas has reopened the window for applications to its Low-Income Energy Assistance Program through May 29. The program, which is normally reserved for winter heating bills, reopened due to the special circumstances brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and is available through the Kansas Department for Children and Families.
1 p.m. | Based on data from the state and local health departments, COVID-19 cases in Kansas increased to 5,886 on Wednesday. Leavenworth County saw a substantial increase in cases to 783.
Combined, Kansas and Missouri have reported 14,986 cases, with that number expected to increase past 15,000 on Wednesday after Missouri officials report the latest data there.
12:25 p.m. | In Kansas, 16,416 initial jobless claims were filed for the week ending May 2. It was a nearly 41% decrease from the 27,663 claims filed the prior week. There are now 92,171 individuals receiving unemployment payments in the state.
12:15 p.m. | Linda Dugan is the director of Comfort Care Home of Kansas City and joined 41 Action News to talk about how the facility keeps residents safe during the pandemic. The facility currently does not have any COVID-19 cases.
11:48 a.m. | St. Louis and St. Louis County will both begin easing stay-at-home orders starting later this month, but officials caution that the process will be slow. St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson and St. Louis County Executive Sam Page both announced that public health restrictions would be reduced starting May 18, according to an Associated Press report.
11:45 a.m. | Fort Hays State University in central Kansas announced plans to reopen the campus for in-person classes in the fall.
The school’s president tasked the university’s Critical Incident Planning Group and Executive Leadership Team with crafting a plan, subject to changing conditions amid the COVID-19 pandemic, that prioritizes “the health and safety of students, faculty, staff, and the greater community” but also ensures students have a suitable environment for learning the school maintains “fiscal footing.”
11:18 a.m. | Taiwan has donated 100,000 surgical masks to Kansas for health-care and meatpacking plant workers, according to the Associated Press.
10:35 a.m. | The University of St. Mary, which has its main campus in Leavenworth, will celebrate this spring’s graduates Saturday with a virtual commencement ceremony for 390 graduates.
The university has chosen not to conduct an in-person graduation ceremony “to help reduce the risk that COVID-19 presents to the community,” according to a news release.
10 a.m. | Just starting your day? We’ve got you covered with a quick look at what you need to know.
9:42 a.m. | Kansas City Councilman Brandon Ellington will host a food drive at Morningstar Baptist Community Center at 27th Street and Prospect Avenue starting at 10 a.m. Wednesday. Kansas City Area Transport Authority staff will be there handing out face masks.
8:55 a.m. | Officials with the University of Kansas Health System gave their daily COVID-19 update.
7:16 a.m. | The Missouri Air National Guard will fly over hospitals to thank healthcare workers Wednesday. Liberty Hospital and North Kansas City Hospital are on the list of stops.
To honor healthcare workers and all essential employees who are helping to combat COVID-19, the wing will perform a flyover across medical facilities in Northwest Missouri on May 6. #139AWsalute https://t.co/Pehto8glvC pic.twitter.com/3P11B5Fbik
— 139th Airlift Wing (@139AW) May 3, 2020
6:18 a.m. | U.S. COVID-19 infection rates outside of New York continue to rise as states start to reopen, according to research from the Associated Press.
5:43 a.m. | Domino's is providing 250 pizzas through its "Feed the Need" initiative, which will be distributed Wednesday by Sporting Serves from noon to 2 p.m. outside No Other Pub in the Kansas City Power and Light District downtown near the intersection of East 14th Street and Grand Boulevard.
To receive a free pizza, individuals must register in advance beginning at 8 a.m. Wednesday morning and bring a confirmation email during the designated pickup time to No Other Pub. Sporting Serves is a new philanthropic arm of Sporting Kansas City.
5:42 a.m. | Some businesses at the Ward Parkway Center in Kansas City, Missouri, will begin to reopen Wednesday under Mayor Quinton Lucas' 10/10/10 plan.
The following stores will reopen between May 6-8:
- Starbucks (mobile orders only)
- Nice Gifts
- State Farm
- Brow Threading
- Elite Nails
- Garry Gribbles Running Sports (curbside pickup only)
- T-Mobile
- Five Below
- Ulta (curbside pickup only)
- Off Broadway Shoes (curbside pickup only)
5:33 a.m. | Social security recipients and those awaiting paper stimulus checks may be looking at a long wait before their money is in their hands.
5 a.m. | Johnson County, Kansas, shared a video about how their ambulances are decontaminated between medical calls to keep staff and patients safe during the COVID-19 pandemic.
#COVID19 Daily Update: Find out the latest info about the #coronavirus in our community and hear from @JoCoMedAct Logistics Manager Scott Sare how ambulances are cleaned to protect patients and first responders from COVID-19.
Info and updates at https://t.co/SKPZSHWrvu pic.twitter.com/dlWznzq4id
— Johnson County, Kan. (@jocogov) May 6, 2020
Previous coverage:
March 2020 updates
April 2020 updates
Friday, May 1
Saturday, May 2
Sunday, May 3
Monday, May 4
Tuesday, May 5
