UPDATES--
UPDATES-- AS TEXAS PREPARES TO REOPEN. GOVERNOR GREG ABBOTT SAYS IT'S
TIME TO GET RID OF THE COVID 19
MANDATES THAT HAVE RESTRICTED
BUSINESSES AND REQUIRED FACE
COVERINGS. HIS ANNOUNCEMENT
BEING MET WITH MIXED REACTIONS.
"IT IS NOW TIME TO OPEN TEXAS
100 PERCENT..." CLAPPING.
THE GOVERNOR MADE THE
ANNOUNCEMENT FROM A RESTAURANT
IN LUBBOCK. WE KNOW BARS AND
RESTAURANTS HAVE BEEN SOME OF
THE HARDEST HIT INDUSTRIES.
ACCORDING TO THE STATE'S
RESTAURANT ASSOCIATION-- TEXAS
HAS LOST 1,000 RESTAURANTS A
MONTH SINCE THE PANDEMIC STARTED
LAST YEAR.
HERE ARE THE TOP THREE THINGS
TO KNOW-- FIRST-- ABBOTT IS
LIFTING THE STATEWIDE MASK
MANDATE. SECOND -- ALL
BUSINESSES WILL BE ALLOWED TO
REOPEN AT FULL CAPACITY. BOTH OF
WHICH WILL GO INTO EFFECT NEXT
WEDNESDAY. AND LASTLY-- THE
GOVERNOR SAYS THE TIME IS
RIGHT-- ESPECIALLY AS THE STATE
VACCINATES MORE FOLKS. HE SAYS
NEARLY 5-POINT-7 MILLION
VACCINES HAVE BEEN ADMINISTERED.
AS OF YESTERDAY-- FEWER THAN 7-
PERCENT OF TEXANS ARE FULLY
VACCINATED. TEXAS RANKS LAST IN
THE COUNTRY IN DOSES
ADMINISTERED PER PERSON,
ACCORDING TO THE CDC.
TEXAS BECOMES THE BIGGEST U-S
STATE TO LIFT ITS MASK MANDATE.
TONIGHT, WE WANT TO BREAK DOWN
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR YOU AND YOUR
FAMILY.
LAUREN HENSLEY IS TALKING
SCHOOLS AS THEY NAVIGATE COVID
PROTOCOLS. BUT FIRST-- JORDAN
JAMES HAS REACTION FROM HEALTH
OFFICIALS AND LOCAL LEADERS.
DEJONIQUE, TALKING LOCAL
LEADERS THIS IS SOMETHING THAT
MANY OF THEM SAW AFTER THE
GOVERNOR HINTED AT MAKING
CHANGES TO COVID-19 RESTRICTIONS
ACROSS THE STATE . AND THEY
WORRY THIS ACTION COULD HAVE
CONSEQUENCES.
AT A PRESS CONFERENCE THIS
AFTERNOON IN WEST TEXAS,
GOVERNOR ABBOTT ANNOUNCED THAT
ALL BUSINESSES AND FACILITIES
WILL BE ABLE TO OPEN UP AT 100
PERCENT OCCUPANCY, STARTING NEXT
WEDNESDAY. AND HE ENDED THE
STATEWIDE MASK ORDER. BUT HE DID
SAY THAT LOCAL JUDGES WILL HAVE
SOME AUTHORITY. THEY CAN DROP
OCCUPANCY LEVEL TO AS LOW AS 50
PERCENT, IF THE REGION'S
HOSPITALIZATION RATE IS OVER 15
PERCENT FOR 7 STRAIGHT DAYS.
" FROM THE VACCINATIONS, FROM
THE REDUCED HOSPITALIZATIONS AND
FROM THE STATE PRACTICES THAT
TEXAS ARE USING THAT STATE
MANDATES ARE NO LONGER NEEDED."
"I'M PRETTY SURE WE'RE GONNA
SEE SOME MORE INFECTIONS THE
QUESTION IS TO WHAT EXTENT. I'M
GONNA WORK WITHIN THE FRAME WORK
THAT HAS BEEN SET BY STATE LAW
AND MONITOR IT VERY CLOSELY."
UNDER
UNDER THE
UNDER THE NEW ORDER, COUNTY JUDGES MAY NOT IMPOSE ANY JAIL TIME FOR THOSE NOT FOLLOWING
COVID-19 ORDERS OR ASSESS ANY
PENALTIES.
THE NEW ORDER RELATED TO
OCCUPANCY LIMITS-- AND LIFTING
OF THE MASK MANDATE TAKES
EFFECT WEDNESDAY, MARCH 10.
TONIGHT AT 10, I'LL TELL YOU WHY
ONE LOCAL MAYOR STRONGLY
DISAGREES WITH THE GOVERNOR'S
DECISION. REPORTING LIVE IN
BEAUMONT, JORDAN JAMES 12NEWS.
THE GOVERNOR'S REOPENING PLAN
COMES AS ONLY ONE ICU BED IS
AVAILABLE IN JEFFERSON COUNTY.
COVID PATIENTS MAKE UP NEARLY
45-PERCENT OF I-C-U PATIENTS AND
ALMOST 12 PERCENT OF THOSE IN
GENERAL BEDS.
ACROSS THE REGION -- COVID
PATIENTS MAKE UP NEARLY
28-PERCENT OF THOSE IN I-C-U AND
13-PERCENT OF THOSE IN GENERAL
BEDS. THE TOTAL COVID
HOSPITALIZATION RATE IS JUST SHY
OF 14-PERCENT.
SO--- WE'RE NOT ABOVE THAT 15-
PERCENT
PERCENT THRESHHOLD USED TO REGULATE RESTRICTIONS. BUT--- PRESDIENT BIDEN URGED TEXANS
DURING HIS VISIT LAST WEEK-- TO
REMAIN ON GUARD.
"CASES AND HOSPITALIZATIONS
COULD GO BACK UP AS NEW VARIANTS
EMERGE. AND IT'S NOT THE TIME TO
RELAX. WE HAVE TO KEEP WASHING
OUR HANDS. STAYING SOCIALLY
DISTANCE, AND FOR GOD'S SAKE,
WHERE YOUR MASS, WHERE YOUR MASK
IS NOT A POLITICAL STATEMENT.
IT'S A PATRIOTIC THING TO DO."
' NO WORD YET FROM THE WHITE
HOUSE ON GOVERNOR ABBOTTS BIG
MOVE. BUT AMID ALL THESE CHANGES
IN TEXAS...O THERE'S NEW HOPE ON
THE VACCINE FRONT. PRESIDENT
BIDEN ANNOUNCED THIS AFTERNOON
THAT EVERY ADULT WILL HAVE A
VACCINE AVAILABLE TO THEM
BEFORE THE SUMMER.
LET'S CONTINUE OUR LIVE TEAM
COVERAGE TONIGHT. SCHOOL
DISTRICTS DIDN'T GET A HEADS UP
FROM THE GOVERNOR. THEY
FOUND OUT ABOUT THE BIG CHANGE
WHEN WE DID - DURING THE
GOVERNOR'S NEWS CONFERENCE.
REACTION FROM OUR LOCAL SCHOOL
DISTRICTS HAVE BEEN POURING IN.
12NEWS INVESTIGATOR LAUREN
HENSLEY IS BREAKING DOWN THEIR
PLANS TONIGHT.
JORDAN AND DEJ-- SOME OF THE
DISTRICT REPS I SPOKE WITH SAY
THEY WANTED TO COMMUNIATE WITH
THEIR STAFF FIRST. AND THAN
SOME OF THEM TOOK TO FACEBOOK TO
ANNOUNCE HOW THE SCHOOL DAY WILL
MOVE FORWARD IN RESPONSE TO THE
GOVERNOR'S ANNOUNCEMENT. MASK OR
NO MASK....
HERE'S A SNAP SHOT OF THE
DIFFERENT RESPONSE COMING FROM A
HANDFUL OF SCHOOLS IN OUR
REGION. THE MAJORITY OF
SCHOOL DISTRICTS SAY THE ARE
WAITING FOR THE "TEA" TO PROVIDE
MORE GUIDANCE BEOFERE ISSUING A
DECISION... MASK OR NO MASK.
LUMBERTON I-S-D WAS ON THE ONLY
DISTRCIT WE FOUND TO COMMIT TO
ADHERING TO THE GOVERNOR'S
ORDER..MEANING NO MASKS.
HARDIN I-S-D, PORT ARTHUR I-S-D
AND PNG I-S-D HAVE STATED IT'S
DISTRICTS WILL CONTINUE
FOLLOWING COVID PROTOCOL...
MEANING MASKS AT SCHOOL...UNTIL
THE T-E-A PROVIDES ADDITIONAL
GUIDANCE.
GUIDANCE.
THE
THE TEXAS
THE TEXAS STATE TEACHERS ASSOCIATION ALSO RELEASING A STATEMENT SAYING STUDENTS, STAFF
AND TEACHERS NEED TO CONTINUE
WEARING A MASK DURING THE SCHOOL
DAY. SAYING QUOTE -- THE
ORGANIZATION 'URGES THE GOVERNOR
TO KEEP HIS MASK MANDATE IN
PLACE, ESPECIALLY IN OUR PUBLIC
SCHOOLS, AND SEE THAT IT IS
ENFORCED.'
THE T-E-A HAS BEEN WORKING WITH
THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE AND THE
STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT DURING
THE PANDEMIC TO PROVIDE GUIDANCE
TO TEXAS SCHOOLS. THE T-E-A SAYS
--- UPDATED GUIDANCE WILL BE
COMING THIS WEEK LAUREN HENSLEY
12NEWS.
12NEWS IS ALL ABOUT FACTS NOT
FEAR.
FEAR. WE
FEAR. WE WILL HAVE CONTINUING COVERAGE ON THE GOVERNOR'S ANNOUNCEMENT ON AIR
AND ONLINE. BE SURE TO
FOLLOW US ON ALL SOCIAL MEDIA
PLATFORMS FOR THE LATEST
DEVELOPMENTS.
TAKING A LOOK OUTSIDE-- AT THE
ROOFING 911 SKYCAM. CERTAINLY A
COOLER AFTERNOON-- FEELS
REFRESHING!
CHIEF METEROLOGIST PATRICK
VAUGHN JOINS US WITH DETAILS --
ON A CHILLY NIGHT ON THE WAY.
GOOD EVENING SE TEXAS! SUNSHINE
HAS
HAS RETURNED TO SE TEXAS THIS AFTERNOON. SATELLITE/RADAR COMPOSITE SHOWS CLEARING SKIES
OVER THE AREA WITH TEMPERATURES
IN THE MIDDLE 50S TO NEAR 60.
BREEZY NORTH WINDS ARE GUSTING
TO AROUND 20 MPH IN SPOTS AND
THIS IS DIRECTING A DRIER AIR
MASS
MASS
INTO
INTO SE
INTO SE TEXAS. OUR FORECAST THIS EVENING LOOKS OUTSTANDING.IT CERTAINLY BEATS
YESTERDAY'S. CLEARING SKIES ARE
FORECAST WITH TEMPERATURES
FALLING INTO THE MIDDLE 50S IN
THE TRIANGLE BY 9 PM. BY
MORNING, TEMPERATURES WILL BE
CHILLY ENOUGH FOR PATCHY FROST
FROM ABOUT INTERSTATE TEN NORTH
INTO THE LAKES AREA. MORE ON
WANTS
WANTS ALL
WANTS ALL SENIORS VACCINATED BY THE END OF MARCH. AND -- THE CLOCK IS TICKING. SOME
SENIORS ARE JUST NOW GETTING
THEIR FIRST DOSE.
AND OTHERS ARE STILL ARE HAVING
TROUBLE FINDING OPTIONS. 12NEWS
REPORTER ALMIYA WHITE EXPLAINS
WHAT IS BEING DONE TO TRY AND
MEET THE NEED OF THIS
POPULATION. 0:14-0:18
0:47-0:51 1:09-1:16
1:37-1:52
SENIOR CITIZENS ARE THE TOP
PRIORITY FOR THE VACCINE ROLLOUT
-- AMANDA SOT: IT'S IMPORTANT
THAT THEY GET THE VACCINE
IMPORTANT BUT NOT SO EASY TO
REACH. AMANDA FREDIKSEN WITH
AARP SAYS THERE ARE SOME
PROGRAMS TO GET SHOTS TO
SENIORS...BUT IT ALL BOILS DOWN
TO ONE THING: AMANDASOT: AND
I THINK IT'S, IT'S BEEN A LITTLE
BIT ALL OVER THE PLACE,
DEPENDING ON WHERE YOU ARE IN
THE STATE, WHERE YOU LIVE. UNDER
A FEDERAL PROGRAM -- SENIORS
LIVING IN LONG TERM CARE
FACILITIES CAN GET THE COVID
VACCINE AT PARTICIPATING
PHARMACIES. BUT SENIOR CITIZENS
LIVING IN SENIOR COMMUNITIES DID
NOT QUALIFY FOR THAT PROGRAM. SO
THEY MAY BE IN 1B PHASE
GROUP... BUT THEY ARE LEFT
ON THEIR OWN TO FIND THEIR OWN
SHOT. AMANDASOT: AND THEY WERE
REALLY TREATED NO DIFFERENTLY
THAN ANYBODY 65 PLUS LIVING IN
THEIR OWN HOME, AND TO MAKE IT A
BIT EASIER -- ITEX, A REAL
ESTATE MANAGMENT COMPANY... AND
RICELAND HEALTH CARE HAVE TEAMED
UP. LOIASOT: WE HAVE TO DO
OUR PART. AND ITEX WAS VERY
THOUGHTFUL AND WE ARE HERE TO
HELP MAKE SURE THAT ALL OF OUR
RESIDENTS HAVE ACCESS TO THE
VACCINE. A MOBILE VACCINE
UNIT IS ON THE MOVE TO GET
"ITEX" TENANTS 65 AND OLDER
VACCINATED. ITEX BEGAN THE
PROGRAM MONDAY. TODAY -- THE
UNIT WAS PARKED OUTSIDE OF
PROVIDENCE ON MAJOR.... A SENIOR
LIVING SITE. TRISHSOT: IT'S A
STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION I
THINK TO TRY TO GET OVER THE
MASK AND BE ABLE TO BE A PERSON
AGAIN. TRISH SESTRIC WAS ONE OF
THE 70 TENANTS THAT RECEIVED HER
SHOT. WHAT SHE APPRECIATES
THE MOST? NOT HAVING TO GO TO
FAR TO GET VACCINATED.
TRISHSOT: I'LL HAVE TO ARRANGE
FOR TRANSPORTATION TO GET ME
SOMEWHERE ELSE SO THIS IS VERY
CONVENIENT TO FOR ME. ONE BY ONE
ITEX IS HOPING TO PROTECT THEIR
SENIORS AMANDA SOT: WE HAVE SO
MANY SENIORS THAT ARE ALONE, AND
DON'T
DON'T HAVE ANYONE LOOKING OUT FOR THEM. AND IF I TEXT CAN DO JUST A LITTLE BIT, TO HELP OUT
AND MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE SAFE,
THEN WE'VE WE'VE DONE OUR PART.
IN TOTAL 700 DOSES WILL BE
GIVEN OUT TO RESIDENTS AT ALL
SEVEN ITEX COMMUNITIES IN THE
REGION. THE GOAL...? TO HAVE
FIRST DOSES COMPLETED BY NEXT
WEEK. AND SECOND DOSES BY
THE END OF THE MONTH. IN
BEAUMONT. ALMIYA WHITE. 12NEWS.
HAPPENING THIS WEEKEND -- THE
V-A WILL OPEN A COVID
VACCINATION SITE IN BEAUMONT.
IT'S FOR VETERANS 50 YEARS AND
OLDER WHO GET THEIR HEALTHCARE
FROM THE V-A.
IT WILL BE AT THE BEAUMONT VA
OUTPATIENT CLINIC THIS SATURDAY
BEGINNING AT 9 A-M. IT WILL
"LAST" UNTIL THEY RUN OUT.
YOU DON'T NEED AN APPOINTMENT --
SO YOU CAN JUST WALK IN. IT'S
ALSO FOR VETERANS OF ANY AGE WHO
ARE EMPLOYED AS ESSENTIAL
FRONTLINE
FRONTLINE WORKERS. YOU JUST NEED TO BRING DOCUMENTATION TO BACK THAT UP. FOR QUESTIONS -- CALL
THE CLINIC AT 981-85-50.
NEW DEVELOPMENTS
NEW DEVELOPMENTS
TONIGHT--
TONIGHT-- 12,000 DOSES ARRIVED THIS MORNING AT NRG PARK IN HOUSTON-- THAT'S THE LARGE
FEMA OPERATION.
THE WAITLIST AT THE SITE IS
BEING EXPANDED-- FOR EVERYONE
THAT QUALIFIES UNDER BOTH THE 1A
AND 1B CATEGORIES. THE SITE
CAN ADMINISTER UP TO 6-THOUSNAD
VACCINES A DAY.
AHEAD