Afternoon News Brief
Written by Tom Tharp on November 25, 2020
Gov. Andrew Cuomo
NY Governor Andrew Cuomo was expected to expand the yellow and orange zones and possibly make Erie county into a red zone today at press briefings in Rochester and Buffalo. Also anticipated was Genesee county being designated a yellow zone. He did not add to any of the micro cluster areas or designate any new ones. He defended the orange zone restrictions in Rochester when officials said that spread of COVID-19 was coming from private gatherings and not from businesses because, Cuomo says, closing businesses is easier to enforce, even if spread is not happening there. “I would say to the health commissioner, you have a 257% increase,” said Cuomo. “Obviously, you haven’t figured out what’s causing it, and if you have, you haven’t stopped it.”
COVID Update: Genesee county has 64 new cases and 30 people have recovered. 13 people are hospitalized and 1 person under the age of 65 has died. Orleans county has 5 new cases and 6 people have recovered. 2 people are hospitalized. Genesee county reached the milestone of over 200 active cases for the first time with 201, and Orleans County has 34 active cases.
New York State legislature is pushing a permanent expansion of mail in voting. A proposed constitutional amendment would do away with the rule limiting absentee voting to people who are ill, have a physical disability or will be out-of-town on Election Day. The proposal could be up for a referendum by next fall.
The unemployment rate for Genesee County rose to 5.1% last month, which is up 1.7% from last October. Rates in Orleans and Wyoming were also higher than one year ago. Overall in New York, the State’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 9.6% in October. By comparison, the state rate was 3.7% in October 2019.
Tompkins Bank is donating thousands of dollars to for what they are calling “Banksgiving”. Tompkins Bank of Castile, Tompkins Insurance Agencies and Tompkins Financial advisors are donating a total of $7,500 to several food pantries, churches and school districts throughout Western New York. In Genesee County the organizations getting the money are City Church and Hope Center.
Veterinarians say pet owners should double-check before sharing any holiday leftovers with their furry friends this Thanksgiving. The SPCA released a list this week of common Thanksgiving foods that are generally safe to share with pets. According to the list, turkey is acceptable as long as it’s boneless and well-cooked, but raw bread dough can be fatal, and pets should be kept away from desserts containing chocolate or raw eggs.
