Gov. Andy Beshear said at his daily coronavirus (COVID-19) briefing on Wednesday that 88 newly confirmed cases of the virus have been reported around the state.
Kentucky now has at least 2,291 COVID-19 victims. The governor reported seven new deaths, raising Kentucky’s death toll to 122 (5.3 percent fatality rate). Beshear said 862 (37.6 percent) people have recovered from the virus.
The newly reported deaths include four women from Jefferson County, ages 88, 89 and two 93-year-olds; a 94-year-old woman from Hopkins County; a 48-year-old man from Simpson County; and a 65-year-old man from an undisclosed county.
To date, at least 28,324 Kentuckians have been tested for the virus, and at least 807 (35.2 percent) victims have ever been hospitalized. Currently 412 people are being treated at a hospital. At least 367 (16.0 percent) victims have ever been in the ICU with at least 252 people currently receiving treatment in intensive care.
Bevin supporter organizes protest
Apparently unable to grasp the gravity of the pandemic or simply ignoring the consequences, hundreds of protestors gathered on the Capitol grounds in Frankfort demanding that businesses in Kentucky reopen.
The protestors were chiefly organized by a supporter of former Gov. Matt Bevin, including Erika Callahan, who thinks hackers skewed the 2019 gubernatorial election toward Beshear, the Louisville Courier-Journal reports. Calihan was appointed by Bevin last year to a judicial nominating commission for the Kentucky Court of Appeals and Kentucky Supreme Court.
Using bullhorns and waving signs that referred to Beshear as a “king” and a “tyrant” for enforcing and issuing social distancing orders, the protesters chanted “Open up Kentucky” and “We want to work.” Protestors could be heard during the governor’s press briefing as several entered the briefing room, shouting slogans such as “We want to work” and “Tyranny kills.”
Beshear acknowledged the protestors during the briefing, responding to one protestor who declared, “Let us work,” by saying, “If I do that more people will die.”
“Hopefully they are distanced from each other,” Beshear added. “… If there isn’t social distancing, they’re spreading the coronavirus, and that’s really concerning.”
Beshear announced that he and Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb and Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine will meet to discuss a plan that eases of COVID-19-related restrictions implemented by the governors. Beshear said they have already had discussions on how to begin reopening their states’ economies while ensuring a second surge of the virus does not occur. They’ve talked at least once a week during the global pandemic, Beshear said.
“By doing this, we believe that we can have a more effective eventual opening of different parts of our economy,” he said.
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com
