New York sees potential slowing of coronavirus outbreak

Staff Writer

April 12, 2020 Updated 4:32 PM PT

As churches across the U.S. held Easter services online, officials in states hit hard by coronavirus looked for glimmers of hope that the pandemic might be slowing in some areas.

Though New York continued to lead the country with 9,385 deaths, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said key indicators, including hospitalizations and ICU admissions, have increased at a lower rate over the last three days.

“It’s all reinforcing the same thing,” Cuomo said. “You’re not seeing a great decline in the numbers, but you’re seeing a flattening.”

There was similar news from New Jersey, where Gov. Phil Murphy told CBS news that his state was still “fighting to stay ahead” of the need for hospital beds, ventilators, personal protective equipment and healthcare workers.

In Illinois, 43 deaths represented the state’s lowest daily total in almost a week.

“I pray, as we move forward, that these trends continue,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker said at a daily news conference.

The numbers played out against a traditional Christian holiday that most U.S. churches observed in nontraditional fashion.

Much like Pope Francis at the Vatican and the Archbishop of Canterbury, who delivered a sermon from the kitchen of his London flat, American clergy took to the internet to connect with congregants barred from attending in person.

Online ceremonies were held from the Washington National Cathedral in the capital and nearby Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. President Trump and his wife, Melania, said they planned to watch a service streamed from the First Baptist megachurch in Dallas.

St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City went online even as residents took to their windows and balconies to sing “Christ the Lord Is Risen Today” in a mass celebration orchestrated by a local Presbyterian church.

There were some instances of pushback against the campaign for an online Easter.

A federal judge ruled that a Louisville, Ky., church could proceed with its plans to hold a drive-in Easter service. About 250 people attended a similar celebration in the parking lot at Happy Gospel Church in Bradenton, Fla., where they sat in lawn chairs or on tailgates while remaining at least six feet apart.

The lieutenant governor of Louisiana criticized a Baton Rouge church where Pentecostal preacher Tony Spell continued to draw hundreds of worshipers despite a statewide order to stay home.

“I think it’s disrespectful not only for the people who show up to church but to all the people of Louisiana,” Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser told CNN. “Somebody’s going to get infected and spread it to other people.”

In Kansas, Republican legislators challenged a ban on large religious gatherings in hopes of allowing congregations to open their doors. Late Saturday night, the state Supreme Court upheld the governor’s stay-at-home order.

Nationwide, the U.S. continued to lead all countries in reported cases, more than 554,000, and deaths, more than 22,000, according to statistics compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

Even in New Hampshire, with comparatively few 929 cases and deaths, Gov. Chris Sununu warned against complacency in social distancing.

“As much as we’ve plateaued, we can see another spike in short order,” he said. “We have to be prepared for the long haul.”

The virus has spread with particular ferocity through nursing homes and long-term-care facilities. With no federal statistics available, the Associated Press reported that, in the last two weeks , nursing home deaths had risen from about 450 to more than 3,300.

At the same time, the statistics in New York were promising enough to have officials looking ahead toward the “next phase” of fighting the pandemic.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said he would — once again — ask federal officials for help in acquiring test kits to assess tens of thousands of residents.

“We’ve pleaded for weeks and weeks for the federal government to provide testing upfront,” De Blasio said. “I will have the conversation with the White House today.”

The mayor also reiterated that he planned to keep schools closed through the remainder of the academic year, despite comments from Gov. Cuomo that the move was premature.

“It’s about getting us out of this horrible phase we’re in with widespread transmission,” De Blasio said. “This is the right thing to do, and we’re going to keep moving forward.”

Cuomo preached patience, insisting that policies need to be coordinated with neighboring New Jersey and Connecticut because so many residents cross state lines, in both directions, for work.

“June is a long way from now,” he said, referring to the end of the school year. “We go day-to-day to watch those numbers.”

With the start of a new week, Cuomo chose to highlight statistics that showed a decelerating outbreak, saying he felt more confident the state’s hospital system would not be overwhelmed as earlier feared.

“We deserve some good news,” he said. “Lord knows.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.