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1. Indian River County schools begin mask mandate as outbreak shuts down elementary school
Indian River County School Board is requiring masks for students in kindergarten through eighth grade until at least Sep. 15
To date, 128 students and 74 staff members have tested positive for COVID-19.
Beachland Elementary School has closed because of a COVID-19 breakout and won't reopen until after Labor Day, Indian River School District said.
2. Didn't the governor ban school mask mandates? A judge struck that down:
In a critical decision impacting millions of students throughout the state, a Florida judge on Friday ruled that public school districts can legally impose universal mask mandates -- without the ability for children to opt out -- to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Judge John Cooper said the governor has no legal authority to issue a blanket ban on school mask mandates.
Cooper said that based on surging COVID-19 cases because of the highly contagious delta variant, a "higher risk of infection to children," and the CDC recommending "universal indoor masking for all teachers, staff, students, and visitors to K-12 schools, regardless of vaccination status," it is reasonable for school districts to enact facial covering requirements without opt-out provisions.
3. Florida adds 151,749 coronavirus cases, 1,727 deaths in past week
Nearly 1 1/2 years since the first coronavirus case occurred in Florida, the latest outbreak is surging to record weekly increases: 1,727 deaths (247 daily) and 152,760 cases (21,823 daily).
For the second week in a row, teenagers represent the highest positivity rate of any age group in the state (23.1%), and for the first time, children younger than 12 represent the age group with the most new cases.
In good news, the 16,457 hospitalizations are less the record 17,295 eight days ago, nearly three-quarters of adults have received at least one vaccine dose, and the weekly first-time infection positivity rate of 16.8% is 3 percentage points down in a week.
4. Ida downs New Orleans power on deadly path through Louisiana
Then Hurricane Ida (now Tropical Storm Ida) knocked out power to all of New Orleans and inundated coastal Louisiana communities on a deadly path through the Gulf Coast that is still unfolding and promises more destruction.
At least one person died in Ascension Parish due to a tree that fell as winds hit around 150 mph upon landfall at the port south of New Orleans.
The center is moving over Louisiana, but will move over Mississippi through the day, then across the Tennessee Valley tomorrow weaking as it lifts to the northeast.
5. Rockets hit neighborhood near Kabul airport amid US pullout
Rocket fire has apparently targeted Kabul’s international airport amid the U.S. military’s evacuation. The rockets hit a nearby neighborhood.
The rockets didn’t halt the steady stream of U.S. military C-17 cargo jets taking off and landing at Hamid Karzai International Airport in the Afghan capital.
Biden administration officials say the United States has the capacity to evacuate the approximately 300 U.S. citizens remaining in Afghanistan who want to leave before President Joe Biden’s Tuesday deadline.
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On This Day In History
On August 30, 1967, Thurgood Marshall becomes the first African American to be confirmed as a Supreme Court justice.
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