Could your pets get sick from COVID-19 exposure? Brooke Thorington has the details.
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Governor Edwards says new data appears to show the state’s stay at home order is working to flatten the curve, but now is no time for residents to get complacent…
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School systems are doing their best to keep students engaged while outside of the classroom setting. Kevin Barnhart has the story.
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With the recent news that a tiger in the Bronx Zoo has tested positive for COVID-19, concern about transmitting the virus from humans to pets has grown. State public health veterinarian Dr. Gary Balsamo says it’s a rare occurrence, but sometimes animals can get sick from exposure.
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Balsamo says the virus survives best on smooth surfaces such as stainless steel, so it is a relatively low threat for animals to carry the virus in their fur.
Cut 5 (09) “…they’re porous surfaces.”
Balsamo says there are steps to reduce the risk of pets becoming ill from exposure.
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It’s been just over two weeks since the state’s stay at home order was implemented and Governor Edwards says it appears the order has resulted in a recent flattening of the curve.
At Tuesday’s press conference the Governor hinted at the fact that the order may have been even more effective at slowing the spread than they planned for, and that’s great news for the state.
Tuesday saw the state’s highest reported death total at 70, but Edwards noted that ventilator use is down, and the number of new hospitalizations is slowing.
Edwards says current measures are working, but if people take this news as a sign that they can start slacking on social distancing it’ll all be for naught.
The Governor noted in a previous press conference that other countries have experienced “waves” of infection where a relaxing of mitigation measures prematurely led to a spike in new cases.
Edwards thanked healthcare workers for developing more efficient treatments and credited the state’s aggressive testing policy for bending the curve.
He noted that the New Orleans region is now no longer projected to run out of ventilator capacity or hospital beds.
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Questions still remain about how the remainder of the school year will be handled, but much of the determination is left in the hands of each district. Executive Director for the Louisiana Association of School Superintendents Michael Faulk says some districts are making the effort to engage students through technology.
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Faulk says rural broadband availability has been a hurdle for some districts, so they have resorted to other methods of getting educational content to students.
Cut 11 (12) “…students the packets.”
Faulk says having a personal interaction with teachers inside a classroom setting it is an important element to a child’s educational experience and districts.
Cut 12 (13) “…to the teachers.”
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The LA Wallet app, Louisiana’s digital driver’s license, now allows you to renew your driver’s license in the app itself and have an updated digital result in just 24 hours.
The app was designed by Envoc and President Calvin Fabre (fay-bree) says the next time you log into the app you’ll notice a new button that says “check for renewal” that checks your renewal eligibility.
He adds you do need to make sure your app is up to date first.
Fabre says if you renew through the app you’ll have your up to date license available for use at participating vendors in less than a day.
App users will not be charged any additional fees that wouldn’t be charged to those using the standard online renewal process.
OMV offices are closed as long as the stay at home order is in effect so Fabre says now is a good time to try the app, especially considering it is free.