Live Update
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis will hold a press conference with Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran in St. Petersburg on Wednesday.
Although it is unclear what the governor will speak at the meeting, Florida is currently responding to the COVID-19 surge, the mask debate and the potential impact of tropical storm Fred.
The press conference starts at 10:30 am EST and can be watched live here.
The number of COVID-19 cases in Florida hit a record high, with an average of more than 20,000 new cases per day in seven days, and more than 56,000 new cases recorded on Tuesday. DeSantis and the state government have been debating with some local legislators and school districts who ignore the executive order prohibiting the wearing of masks.
“The federal government has no right to tell parents that in order for their children to go to school in person, they must be forced to wear masks all day, every day,” DeSantis said. “Many school children in Florida are affected by the mandatory mask-wearing policy. It is prudent to protect the parents’ ability to make decisions about their children’s wearing masks.”
At the same time, according to the National Hurricane Center, Florida may begin to see the effects of tropical storm Fred’s wind and rainfall in the islands before Friday, and the weather will spread northward this weekend.
Check out Newsweek for more updates.
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