COVID-19 lockdowns, Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, two missing in Alaska: 5 things to know Monday
Will Americans see a COVID-19 relief proposal Monday?
With time running out, a COVID-19 relief bill proposal could come as soon as Monday that would provide roughly $300 in extra federal weekly unemployment benefits but not another round of $1,200 in direct payments to most Americans. The $908 billion aid package would be attached to a larger year-end spending bill needed to avert a government shutdown this coming weekend. The proposal is expected to include about $300 per week in bonus federal unemployment payments, providing relief just as emergency aid payments at regular benefit levels are set to expire at the year's end. It would extend a freeze on evictions for people who cannot pay their rent and reauthorize the Paycheck Protection Program to give a second round of subsidies to businesses struggling through the pandemic.
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Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day: Looking back at fateful attack 79 years ago
On Monday, Americans will mark the 79th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii that propelled the U.S. into World War II. Japanese planes launched from aircraft carriers executed the surprise attack of all surprise attacks on Dec. 7, 1941. The "date which will live in infamy," as then-President Franklin Delano Roosevelt put it, started out as a quiet Sunday in Honolulu but turned into an explosive scene, filled with sunken ships, destroyed planes and 2,400 dead. According to the National Park Service, Congress designated Dec. 7 as National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day in August 1994. Remembrance events are held every year at the Pearl Harbor National Memorial.
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Southern California enters COVID-19 lockdown
More than half of California will be under lockdown orders by Monday morning as the state scrambles to slow the rapid escalation of COVID-19 cases. The restrictive mandates went into effect Sunday night across much of the state and they are similar to those established in March. Indoor and outdoor dining is banned, people cannot gather with anyone outside their households and hair salons, barber shops and movie theaters must shut down. With a population of 40 million people, California has reported more than 1.3 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 and about 20,000 deaths.Meanwhile, about 50 hospitals in the United Kingdom are expected on Monday to receive the first batch of the coronavirus vaccine created by American drugmaker Pfizer and Germany's BioNTech, according to the BBC. Vaccinations will be administered starting Tuesday in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
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More rain, snow forecast amid search for 2 people lost in Alaska mudslides
Search and rescue efforts are expected to continue Monday for two people who went missing in a mudslide in Haines, Alaska last week. But recovery efforts for David Simmons, 30, and Jenae Larson, 23, could potentially be slowed by more wet weather as officials warned of possible evacuations with more snow and rain in the forecast this week. Haines, a community of about 2,000 people in the Alaska Panhandle, was one of the most devastated cities in the state during a record rain event that triggered mudslides and widespread flooding. At least four homes were destroyed and hundreds have been damaged, according to the Anchorage Daily News. Haines will endure more precipitation this week, but the chances of another mudslide are unlikely, National Weather Service Meteorologist Rick Fritsch told USA TODAY on Sunday.
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Steelers vs. Ravens; 49ers vs. Washington: NFL doubleheader
The coronavirus pandemic's impact on the NFL will be on full display Monday. The undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers, who beat the Baltimore Ravens in a rare Wednesday NFL game, will host the Washington Football Team (5 p.m. ET, FOX, though not available nationally) in a game originally scheduled to be played Sunday. Later, the San Francisco 49ers will be the "home" team when they play the AFC East-leading Buffalo Bills at the home stadium of the Arizona Cardinals (8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN). The 49ers — who are in the thick of the NFC playoff race, were forced to temporarily relocate after Santa Clara County issued a three-week ban on contact sports.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: COVID-19 lockdowns, Pearl Harbor, Alaska, NFL: 5 things to know Monday