Bloggytown

City National Bank and Food Share partner for Orlando food distribution event this Tuesday

by Matthew Moyer on November 23, 2020 at 1:32PM

City National Bank of Florida and Farm Share are partnering for a food distribution event this week, ahead of the holidays. CNB, which has Central Florida locations in downtown Orlando and Winter Park, and the nonprofit Farm Share will be giving out free food to those in need on Tuesday, Nov. 24.

Brightline and Walt Disney World announce partnership to build station at Disney Springs

by Matthew Moyer on November 23, 2020 at 11:23AM

Brightline and Walt Disney World announced a new agreement on Monday to construct a Brightline station at Disney Springs. The planned station at Walt Disney Resorts will connect Disney with existing and in-the-works Brightline hubs at Orlando International Airport, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Aventura, Boca Raton and Port Miami.

Florida man snatches back pet dog from jaws of alligator while chomping on cigar himself

by Colin Wolf on November 23, 2020 at 10:16AM

This story first appeared on our sister paper's site, Creative Loafing Tampa. — Please follow CDC guidelines and Orange County advisories to stay safe, and consider supporting this free publication.

Orange County Health Services expands free COVID-19 testing at Barnett Park to 7 days a week

by Matthew Moyer on November 20, 2020 at 2:55PM

Orange County Health Services is expanding the operating days of the drive-through coronavirus testing site at Barnett Park. Free testing will now be offered on Saturday and Sunday.

Orange County CARES Act portal for pandemic assistance to reopen next week for one of the last times

by Matthew Moyer on November 20, 2020 at 1:40PM

Orange County government will reopen the CARES Act portal for coronavirus pandemic assistance for another round of applications next week, and this will apparently be one of the very last times. The portal will reopen at 8 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 24, and accept 15,000 applications total before closing.

Florida Sen. Rick Scott tests positive for COVID-19

by Matthew Moyer on November 20, 2020 at 10:28AM

Scott had taken several several rapid tests this week, which all came back negative. However, he took a PCR test on Tuesday and that yielded positive results.

DeSantis 'hopes' yet-to-be-approved vaccines will be available in Florida in 3 to 6 weeks

by The News Service of Florida on November 20, 2020 at 10:04AM

In a five-minute video released Thursday, Gov. Ron DeSantis said his goal is to make yet-to-be-approved COVID-19 vaccines available to Florida residents who voluntarily agree to get inoculated and that he hopes the vaccines will be available in the next three to six weeks. Pfizer and Moderna have announced development of vaccines with 90 percent efficacy rates in clinical trials.

AdventHealth Orlando will be among first hospitals to receive COVID-19 vaccines

by Ray Roa on November 19, 2020 at 1:14PM

Multiple reports say that AdventHealth Orlando will be one of the first hospitals in Florida to administer COVID-19 vaccines. Tampa General Hospital, UF Health Jacksonville, Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood and Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami are the other four hospitals in Florida that will store the vaccine while they wait for final approval to use it, officials said Wednesday.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio grasps at outrage straws over Dem politician quoting Jesus

by Colin Wolf on November 18, 2020 at 2:57PM

Rubio, who is known for posting daily Bible verses, seems to forget that Warnock is actually quoting the big man, Jesus Christ himself. As former national press secretary for the Democratic National Committee Hari Sevugan pointed out, the verse comes from the Sermon on the Mount, and illustrates a basic Christian concept about not serving two masters.

Dinoland U.S.A., possibly not the best place to trip

Florida man on LSD tackles Disney security guard at Animal Kingdom

by Matthew Moyer on November 18, 2020 at 12:32PM

Years worth of jokes and boasts about visiting Disney whilst tripping – we're thinking especially of a Simpsons episode where Lisa Simpson had a bad trip on a ride that seems suspiciously like It's A Small World – went drastically wrong when a South Florida man on acid tackled a Disney security guard at Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park. Unlike the Disneyland Paris visitor last year who took some LSD and simply got naked and went for a wander, James Arvid, 19, was arrested after tackling a security guard at DinoLand U.S.A. last month.

Orange County's coronavirus 'strike teams' finds a number of downtown and UCF area bars with no COVID-19 precautions in place

by Matthew Moyer on November 17, 2020 at 7:43PM

this week, that's my projection" said Demings. And the numbers just keep going up and up.

The City of Orlando announces new 'Under-I' urban park project underneath I-4 downtown

by Matthew Moyer on November 16, 2020 at 4:21PM

_ Please follow CDC guidelines and Orange County advisories to stay safe, and please support this free publication. Our small but mighty team is working tirelessly to bring you news on how coronavirus is affecting Central Florida.

Orange County Clerk of Courts to offer free evictions update and resources webinar in December

by Matthew Moyer on November 16, 2020 at 1:54PM

The Orange County Clerk of Courts is offering a free Zoom webinar in December to assist local residents in navigating the increasingly complex web of legal and financial issues around eviction during the coronavirus pandemic. The Legal Matters Forum Series: Evictions Update During COVID-19 will provide up-to-date information about what exactly is happening with evictions locally and statewide and about Orange County's own Eviction Diversion Program, with experts from Orange County's Self-Help Center, the Paul C. Perkins Bar Association and the judiciary all weighing in.

As COVID rates rise with no federal help in sight, airlines hope testing passengers will help ease travel concerns

by Ken Storey on November 16, 2020 at 9:30AM

Testing isn’t enough, as the recent SeaDream cruise in the Caribbean discovered. That cruise saw all passengers and crew tested numerous times, yet a positive case still occurred aboard, quickly spreading to more than a half-dozen positive cases in the ensuing 96 hours.

Florida Sen. Rick Scott to self-quarantine after COVID-19 exposure on Friday

by Matthew Moyer on November 16, 2020 at 8:06AM

This is Scott's second time in self-quarantine. Back in March he quarantined after attending a Miami event with a Brazilian diplomat who tested positive for COVID-19.

Orange County leaders buy cold storage to be ready for potential COVID-19 vaccine

by Matthew Moyer on November 13, 2020 at 6:00PM

A COVID-19 vaccine might not be ready just yet, but Orange County is already taking steps to have ready the necessary cold storage space that will be needed when the time comes. As first reported by the Orlando Business Journal, Orange County government has spent $67,000 on a freezer, refrigerator, and ultra-cold freezer that will potentially be able to store up to 150,000 does of vaccine.

Transmission electron micrograph of SARS-CoV-2 virus particles, isolated from a patient.

55 attendees of wedding reception in rural Maine linked to 177 coronavirus cases, 7 deaths

by The News Service of Florida on November 13, 2020 at 4:50PM

A wedding reception in rural Maine attended by 55 guests was epidemiologically linked to 177 COVID-19 cases between Aug. 7 and Sept. 14, including seven hospitalizations and seven deaths, according to a new report issued by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Secondary and subsequent contacts following the wedding reception, researchers believe, led to infections at a long-term care facility about 100 miles away and a correctional facility about 200 miles away.

It's open enrollment for Obamacare in Florida, as SCOTUS weighs striking down the healthcare law

by Trimmel Gomes, Florida News Connection on November 13, 2020 at 1:59PM

Open enrollment for Obamacare is in full swing in Florida, even as the U.S. Supreme Court listened to oral arguments this week on whether the law is constitutional. There's a lot of uncertainty surrounding the Affordable Care Act, even though pandemic-related job losses are driving more people to sign up for its coverage.

Trump won Florida after running a false ad in Spanish linking Biden to Venezuelan socialists

by Jeremy B. Merrill and Ryan McCarthy, ProPublica on November 13, 2020 at 8:23AM

want Biden — so we should vote Trump,” Acosta-Ramos said. What a Biden staffer described as a flood of information put the Democrat’s campaign on the defensive.

Orange County CARES Act portal for individual and family assistance to open again next week

by Matthew Moyer on November 12, 2020 at 3:33PM

Orange County government will reopen the CARES Act portal for individual and family assistance for yet another round of applications next week, in a measure of good news for Orange County residents. The portal will reopen on Monday, Nov. 16, at 8 a.m., and accept 15,000 applications total before closing again.

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