COVID Update. Dallas County reported two deaths and 106 new cases yesterday (a two-day total). The average number of new daily cases for the last two-week period is 104; for the previous two-week period, it was 100. Encourage your friends to get vaccinated. In the United States, we’re now up to six “variants of concern”: alpha, delta, beta, gamma, B.1.427 epsilon, and B.1.429 epsilon. With a drop in demand for the vaccine(s), the county plans to close its Fair Park vaccination site July 17.
American Airlines Cancels Flights. The carrier is canceling about 72 flights a day through mid-July (only about 1 percent of its flights) because high demand and “unprecedented” weather are straining the system.
North Texas Hotels Struggle to Staff Up. Vacationers are coming, and our hotels are understaffed. Local hotels are running right now at about 30 to 45 percent of their pre-pandemic staffing levels.
No Olympics for Michelle Carter. The defending Olympic shot put champ, who is from Red Oak, had a surgery that wound up being more complicated than anticipated. As a result, she can’t compete in the Olympic trials. If you’ve never heard of Carter, read this story. She’s pretty cool.
