'A Terrible, Tragic Thing': Child Finds Parents Dead From Virus

MEHLVILLE, MO — An 11-year-old girl from St. Louis County made a tragic discovery Thursday morning, one that's left her neighbors stunned and with heavy hearts.

Her parents had died of COVID-19.

The girl found them dead in their bed, neighbors told KSDK.

Police told the television station the couple was in their 40s.

"It's really a terrible, tragic thing," neighbor Chuck Duy told the TV station. "To lose both parents at one time you know for an 11-year-old, it's really tragic. Last year at Christmas time they came down to our door and gave us cookies. They were just the nicest people.

"We are praying for the girl and their family," Duy added.

Read more via KSDK

The Latest

A third vaccine to fight the coronavirus that has claimed more than 500,000 American lives has been approved. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave the emergency use approval for the single-dose vaccine developed by Johnson & Johnson on Saturday, paving the way for its distribution to begin sometime in the upcoming week.

The decision came a day after FDA panelists voted unanimously to endorse the vaccine developed by J&J, stating the benefits of the vaccine outweighed the risks for adults.

The J&J vaccine was found to have a 72 percent overall efficacy rate in the United States. It also showed 86 percent efficacy against severe forms of COVID-19 in the United States, and 82 percent against severe disease in South Africa.

Approval for the third vaccine comes as experts fear another case surge, this one as a result of the winter storm that ravaged Texas and much of the Southern United States two weeks ago.

The worry comes from the loss of power millions saw and then being forced to gather at other people's homes and public gathering places that had power.

About 200 people took refuge from the record cold at a convention center in Fort Worth, and another 650 or so gathered at a convention center in Dallas, according to reports from The New York Times and Texas Tribune. One site in Houston had nearly 800 people at one time, the reports state.

“It is possible to see an uptick from the Texas storm,” Dr. Katelyn Jetelina, an epidemiologist at UTHealth School of Public Health in Dallas, told the NYT. “We had a lot of things going against us.”

It's "a little bit worrying" to see people congregated indoors for long periods of time, Jetelina said.

Already, the seven-day case and death average nationally are up for the first time in weeks, data from The Washington Post shows. Hospitalizations from the coronavirus continue on the downward trend.

Meanwhile, the U.S. House of Representatives this weekend passed President Joe Biden's massive $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, bringing pandemic-weary Americans a step closer to additional direct aid and emergency jobless benefits.

The package, which also includes billions of dollars for vaccines, schools, state and local governments, and the ailing restaurant industry, passed on a near party-line 219-212 vote early Saturday. Two Democrats joined all Republicans in voting against the measure.

The measure now heads to the Senate, where Democrats seem bent on resuscitating their minimum wage push and fights could erupt over state aid and other issues. Currently, the proposal would raise the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2025, more than doubling the current $7.25 floor that's been in effect since 2019.

Republicans oppose the sweeping bill, saying it's too expensive, not targeted enough at the people and businesses that most need it, and a grab bag of gifts for Democratic allies. Not one has publicly said they will support the legislation.

• House Passes $1.9 Trillion Relief Bill On Near Party-Line Vote

As of Sunday, more than 72.8 million doses of the vaccines have been administered across the United States, according to data compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Despite the increasing pace of vaccinations and decreasing number of daily cases, health officials are warning governors against relaxing coronavirus restrictions early.

During a White House coronavirus briefing, Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said a recent steep drop in the number of U.S. coronavirus cases and deaths "may be stalling" and "potentially leveling off at still a very high number," the New York Times reported.

"I know people are tired; they want to get back to life, to normal," Walensky said. "But we're not there yet."

Walensky's warning comes as a number of governors in Republican-led states are rolling back coronavirus prevention measures. On Friday, Gov. Henry McMaster of South Carolina, announced that on Monday, restaurants would be able to serve alcohol past 11 p.m. A day prior, Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas said he was considering lifting a statewide mask mandate in place since July.

Finally, flu reports are coming in at the lowest levels in decades, the AP reported this week.
Experts say that measures put in place to fend off the coronavirus — mask-wearing, social distancing and virtual schooling — were a big factor in preventing a "twindemic" of flu and COVID-19. A push to get more people vaccinated against flu probably helped, too, as did fewer people traveling, they say.

One pediatric flu death has been reported so far this season, compared with 92 reported at the same point in last year's flu season., CDC numbers show.

There haven't been any cases at some of the nation's most prominent hospitals — such as the Maine Medical Center in Portland, the northeasternmost state's largest hospital.

"I have seen zero documented flu cases this winter," Dr. Nate Mick, head of the emergency department, told the AP.

• Flu All But Vanished In United States Amid Coronavirus

Newest Numbers

As of Sunday afternoon, the United States had reported more than 28.5 million cases and more than 512,300 deaths from COVID-19-related illnesses, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

At least 1,894 deaths and 71,734 new cases of coronavirus were reported in the United States on Saturday, according to a Washington Post database. The Post's reporting shows that over the past week, new daily cases have risen 2.4 percent, new daily deaths have risen 7.8 percent and COVID-19-related hospitalizations have fallen 12 percent.

More than 96.4 million vaccine doses have been distributed and more than 72.8 million administered in the United States as of Sunday, according to the CDC. More than 48.4 million people have received one dose, and nearly 23.7 million have received two.

Currently, 48,870 people are hospitalized with a coronavirus-related illness in the United States, according to the Covid Tracking Project.

As of Sunday, 23 states and U.S. territories remained above the positive testing rate recommended by the World Health Organization to safely reopen. To safely reopen, the WHO recommends states remain at 5 percent or lower for at least 14 days.

Stay up to date on the latest coronavirus news via The New York Times or The Washington Post.

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