Weather Discussion: We’ll see a chilly afternoon but things are warming back up very soon. Expect a mix of sun & clouds today with highs on either side of 40 & wind chills in the 30s. Tonight will be cloudy with the chance for some light snow showers, especially in the north and lows near freezing. Partly cloudy with seasonable highs on Tuesday. We’re back near 50 but mostly cloudy on Wednesday. Partly cloudy on Thursday & Friday with highs in the low to mid-50s. Highs will be in the upper 40s over the weekend & we’ll get partly cloudy skies on Saturday with rain possible on Sunday. An early mix is possible on Monday with highs in the low 40s.
December will start off mild with temperatures in the 40s on Tuesday and Wednesday and the 50s on Thursday and Friday.
Nov 29, 2021
TOLEDO, Ohio — We are rounding out the month of November with a chance for snow showers Monday evening.
Before the flakes flutter it will be a brighter day with highs near 40 degrees. The light showers begin after the sun goes down. Accumulations will be very light.
Highs will run in the 40s the next few days, potentially reaching 50 degrees on Thursday. The weather pattern looks to pick up next week with several chances for rain and potentially light snow.
The rest of the workweek will bring a big warmup.
Highs will reach the 40s Tuesday and Wednesday, soaring to the 50s Thursday and Friday!
Despite this milder start to December, a few rain showers are possible late Wednesday into Thursday.
Cuyahoga and Geauga counties remain under a Winter Weather Advisory until 7 a.m. Not one, not two, but three more clippers are coming our way this week.
Nov 29, 2021
CLEVELAND — This morning’s lingering snow showers should be wrapping up as we head to mid-day. We aren’t expecting major impacts for the commute.
Yep – I know you are rushing around this time of the year. It seems like the very minute you think you will get a break something else pops up and you’re off and running again.
Atmospherically, spring and autumn are our busiest time of the year, and fall (especially) things can come at us very quickly.
As the cold air to our north begins to invade, it is battling against the firmly entrenched warm air that has been sitting here for a few months. Thanks to lower sun angles and shorter days, the cold air definitely has an advantage.
The southern fringes of the colder northern air is defined by the jet stream. This fast current of air high in the atmosphere is the guiding force for storm systems. Based on how that pattern is set up, this can resemble a super-highway with fast moving, small storm systems (known as clippers) streaming along. Each one comes with a chance for precipitation (type based on temperature profiles from surface and above), but they usually don’t stick around long enough to have much impact.
The jet stream is in our neck of the woods and we are expecting several clippers to keep us busy this week. Tonight’s coming snow (less than 2” for all) is indeed due to a clipper. The rain/snow on Thursday and again on Saturday are also thanks to these fast hits of energy.
Also of note – today is the first day our sunset is earlier than 5 p.m. For the next month we’ll continue to tick off the seconds and minutes to our shortest day of the year Dec. 21. (For my fellow nerds out there, the time of the solstice is at 10:59 a.m.)
Have a great Monday!
YOUR 3-DAY FORECAST:
TODAY: Lake snow ends with a mix of sun and clouds. Clouds thicken again late day with snow developing. Mid to upper 30s.
TUESDAY: Clouds, early flurries with pockets of snow. Low 40s.
WEDNESDAY: Clouds with sun peeks, late shower. Mid to upper 40s.
For more details on the extended forecast, see the latest video forecast above.
Cincinnati -- The sky will be mostly sunny this morning and then clouds slowly build this afternoon. Temperatures will warm to 43 degrees, just a touch cooler than what we saw on Sunday.
A quick moving system will pass through the Ohio Valley on Tuesday but it doesn't look like it will produce any rain. Temperatures warm nicely ahead of the system during the day with highs in the low 50s.
Tuesday's system stalls to our south on Wednesday and this could be the focal point for a few light showers on Wednesday. Currently, there is very little moisture with this system and not a lot of consistency on timing, so check back for the latest. But hopefully it turns out to be a minor system. Highs on Wednesday warm to 52.
The pick of the week is Thursday as highs increase to the low 60s with a mostly cloudy sky.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Joe Biden is set to deliver remarks on the emergence of the omicron variant Monday morning.
Biden will speak at about 11:45 a.m. ET after he and Vice President Kamala Harris receive a briefing from members of the White House COVID-19 Response Team on the latest developments related to the new coronavirus variant.
The president stayed in contact with COVID-19 experts over the weekend, including Dr. Anthony Fauci, who he met with in person on Sunday.
Fauci told Biden that it will take about two more weeks to have more definitive information on the transmissibility, severity, and other characteristics of the omicron variant, but the expert continues to believe that existing vaccines are likely to provide a degree of protection against severe cases of COVID-19, according to the White House.
The Biden administration says Fauci also reiterated that boosters for fully vaccinated individuals provide the strongest available protection from COVID-19.
“The COVID Response Team’s immediate recommendation to all vaccinated adults is to get a booster shot as soon as possible,” wrote the White House.
All adults are now eligible for a booster if they were vaccinated six months ago or more with Pfizer or Moderna, or two months ago or more with Johnson & Johnson.
“Importantly, those adults and children who are not yet fully vaccinated should get vaccinated immediately,” the administration advised.
Much of the world is anxiously waiting to learn more about the omicron variant, which was identified days ago by researchers in South Africa. Since then, it has appeared as far apart as Hong Kong, Australia, and Portugal. Canada, our neighbors to the north, have also identified cases of the variant.
The World Health Organization has classified the omicron variant, otherwise known as B.1.1.529, as a “variant of concern.” No cases of the variant have been identified in the U.S. as of Monday morning, but experts say it’s only a matter of time.
“We expect omicron to be identified quickly, if it emerges in the U.S.,” wrote the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in a statement on the variant.
As a result of the emerging variant, Biden has ordered additional air travel restrictions from South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique and Malawi. Those will take effect Monday.
“Omicron’s very emergence is another reminder that although many of us might think we’re done with Covid-19, it’s not done with us,” the head of the World Health Organization said.
NBC News November 29, 2021
LONDON — The global risk of the new omicron variant is “very high,” the World Health Organization saidMonday, as more countries reported cases of the variant, sparking worldwide concern that there is more pandemic suffering ahead.
In response to the spike in cases, an increasing number of nations are tightening their borders despite pleas for caution and outbursts of dismay from some.
“Omicron's very emergence is another reminder that although many of us might think we’re done with Covid-19, it’s not done with us,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organization, told a special session of the World Health Assembly.
In advice to its member states, the U.N. agency urged them to accelerate Covid-19 vaccination coverage “as rapidly as possible,” particularly among high-priority groups, and to enhance surveillance and sequencing efforts.
“Omicron has an unprecedented number of spike mutations, some of which are concerning for their potential impact on the trajectory of the pandemic,” the body said in the report it tweeted out. “If another major surge of Covid-19 takes place driven by omicron, consequences may be severe.”
The new variant was first detected in southern Africa last week, and has now been detected in countries around the world. Meanwhile, cases in Scotland and Portugal suggest that the variant may already be spreading outside the southern African region.
"There might already be some community transmission of this variant in Scotland," First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said after the country reported its first six cases.
Health officials in Portugal said the country had detected 13 cases among team members of a professional soccer club, according to The Associated Press. One of those who tested positive at the Lisbon-based Belenenses soccer club had recently traveled to South Africa.
Quarantining became an issue in the Netherlands, where Dutch military police arrested a husband and wife who left the hotel where they were being held after testing positive and boarded a plane to Spain, The AP reported.
The variant has now been detected in the U.K., the Netherlands, Italy, Germany, Belgium, Canada, Australia, Israel and Hong Kong, among other countries.
Ireland is also studying more than 10 potential cases of the variant, health minister Stephen Donnelly told Virgin Media News Monday.
The extent of the actual spread of the omicron variant around the world, however, still remains unclear as countries discover new cases each day. The U.S. has yet to identify any cases, but the government’s leading infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, and other experts have warned that it could already have made it to America. Dr. Kavita Patel, NBC News’ medical contributor, said: “It’s already here. We know from previous variants that by the time we pick it up in Africa and the European Union, it’s already likely.”
Columbus Dispatch /USA Today Network November 28, 2021
Nearly two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, the world is going full speed ahead to contain the latest variant, first identified in southern Africa but popping up around the globe.
Effectiveness of COVID vaccines against omicron variant yet to be determined
The World Health Organization named the new version of the virus “omicron” and classified it as a highly transmissible variant of concern, though its actual risks are not yet understood. Early evidence suggests that it poses an increased risk that people who have already had COVID-19 could catch it again, the WHO said. It could take weeks to know whether current vaccines remain effective against it.
Scientists know that omicron is genetically distinct from previous variants, including the beta and delta variants, but they do not know whether these genetic changes actually make it any more transmissible or dangerous. So far, there is no indication the variant causes more severe disease.
Experts are hopeful that vaccines will be at least somewhat effective at preventing serious illness and death — and continue to encourage people to get inoculated.
Peter Openshaw, a professor of experimental medicine at Imperial College London said it was “extremely unlikely” that current vaccines wouldn’t work, noting they are effective against numerous other variants.
But as the virus continue to spread, countries across the globe are imposing restrictions or bans on travelers from several countries and re-imposing measures such as mask mandates that some hoped were a thing of the past.
Omicron mutations might lead to 'enhanced transmissibility'
Scientists are concerned because the new variant appears to have a high number of mutations — about 30 — in the coronavirus’ spike protein, which could affect how easily it spreads among people.
Sharon Peacock, who has led genetic sequencing of COVID-19 in Britain at the University of Cambridge, said the data so far suggest the new variant has mutations “consistent with enhanced transmissibility,” but said that “the significance of many of the mutations is still not known.”
Moshabela said, “We did expect that we may see a new or a different variant gaining momentum in the fourth wave. ... We did not really expect to see a variant with the kind of multiplicity of mutations. And that is capable of becoming highly transmissible and escape or evade immunity at the same time. This was really the shock that we had.”
Like the delta variant, omicron appears to be more contagious than the original strain of COVID-19.
WKYC / Associated Press November 29, 2021
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — There have been several COVID-19 variants at this point, including the delta and lambda variants, so why does omicron have experts so concerned?
For starters, omicron, much like the delta variant, appears to be more contagious than the original strain of COVID-19.
Let's connect the dots.
The data is still very limited, but there is concern that it could also cause more re-infections in people who already had the virus. That's because omicron has more mutations than we've seen in other variants.
Researchers in South Africa say they've identified at least 30 changes to the original spike protein.
For context, the delta variant has less than half as many. More mutations mean our current covid vaccines are less specialized to target the variant. Dr. Peter Hotez, an expert with the Baylor College of Medicine in Texas, doesn't think omicron is anything to panic about yet.
“I have not seen strong evidence that it's more transmissible than delta. The UK government says it might be, and it might be,” Dr. Hotez said.
“We had 'beta' out of South Africa. It never really took off. We had 'lambda' out of South America. It never took off. This may not take off. The key is knowing its transmissibility,” Dr. Hotez said. “Worst case scenario, studies show it is much more transmissible than delta and has high immune escape potential, then we have to go to Plan B and start designing boosters, but I think we’re a long way away from that yet.”
The CDC says variants are to be expected because viruses are constantly changing. Experts say your best defense is still getting the COVID-19 vaccine.
Top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci said Monday morning there were still no cases of the variant identified in the U.S. but that it was "inevitable."
10TV / Associated Press November 28, 2021
President Joe Biden will urge Americans to get vaccinated and to receive a booster shot as he seeks to quell concerns Monday over the new COVID-19 variant omicron, but won't immediately push for more restrictions to stop its spread, his chief medical adviser said.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert and Biden's leading COVID-19 adviser, said Monday that there were as yet still no cases of the variant identified in the U.S. but that it was "inevitable" that it would make its way into the country eventually.
Speaking on ABC's "Good Morning America," Fauci said scientists hope to know in the next week or two how well the existing COVID-19 vaccines protect against the variant, and how dangerous it is compared to earlier strains.
Biden is set to speak later Monday to emphasize the importance of vaccination to protecting against all variants of the COVID-19 virus and the urgency of vaccinating the roughly 80 million Americans aged 5 and up who haven't received a shot. But he was not expected to announce any new virus-related restrictions, beyond last week's move to restrict travel from South Africa and seven other countries in the region effective Monday.
"I don't think so at all," Fauci said if more restrictions were imminent.
Officials said the move to limit most travel from the countries where omicron was first identified was meant to buy time for the U.S to learn more about the variant. But Fauci said it would eventually reach the U.S. and could, like the delta variant before it, become the dominant strain, saying omicron "has a transmissibility advantage" over other variants.
Pharmaceutical companies are already tweaking their existing COVID-19 vaccines to better attack the omicron variant, but Fauci said Americans should make it a priority to get either their first shots or a booster dose now, rather than waiting for a newly formulated shot.
"I would strongly suggest you get boosted now," he said.
He added that depending on what scientists learn about the omicron variant in the coming weeks "we may not need" targeted boosters to contain that strain of the virus.
Ohio has had 1,677,741 total cases of COVID-19, an increase of 4,245 cases from Nov. 27 according to the state's coronavirus dashboard updated Nov. 28.
The state's 21-day average is 5,026.
Ohio has an average of 538.2 cases per 100,000 residents over two weeks, the ODH reported Nov. 25.
The ODH has changed how it releases COVID-19 deaths in the state after conducting a review of the process. Deaths will be verified by coded death certificate information received from the National Center for Health Statistics, which can take some time to receive, according to a note on the ODH website. Death information is not available daily and is updated twice a week.
Ohio residents account for a total of 26,455 COVID-19 deaths, the ODH reported Nov. 26; the median age of those who have died is 78.
The individuals who have tested positive range in age of less than a year to 111 years old; the median age is 39.
As of Nov. 28, the total number of tests conducted in Ohio is 18,070,485. The daily percent positivity of confirmed laboratory tests is 14.7%, with a seven-day moving average of 14%, according to Nov. 26 data reported by performing labs via ODH's electronic laboratory reporting system.
The ODH reports 85,694 cumulative hospitalizations, and 10,695 individuals have been admitted to the ICU due to the coronavirus. The median age of those hospitalized is 65.
There are currently 3,525 people hospitalized due to COVID-19 as of Nov. 28 – 958 are in the ICU, 599 are on ventilators.
The ODH reports 1,550,522 individuals are presumed recovered – defined as cases with a symptom onset over 21 days prior who are not deceased.
Cuyahoga County accounts for 163,502 of the cases, 9,333 hospitalizations and 2,636 deaths.
A total of 6,746,229 Ohioans (57.71% of the state's population) have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, and 6,160,055 Ohioans (52.7%) completed the vaccination process as of Nov. 28. A total of 1,603,456 have received additional doses.
Of Ohioans 18 and older, 68.23% (6,216,388) have started the vaccination process, and 63.63% (5,797,324) have completed it. A total of 1,601,846 have received additional doses.
Of Ohioans 12 and older, 66.13% (6,613,032) have started the vaccination process, and 61.56% (6,156,578) have completed it. A total of 1,603,411 have received additional doses.
Of Ohioans 5 and older, 61.34% (6,746,211) have started the vaccination process, and 56.01% (6,160,051) have completed it. A total of 1,603,456 have received additional doses.
If you have questions regarding COVID-19, call 833-4ASKODH (833-427-5634) or visit coronavirus.ohio.gov.
Less than half of Ohio families who lost someone have applied
Springfield News-Sun November 27, 2021
Less than half of Ohio families who lost a loved one to COVID-19 have applied for reimbursement for funeral expenses offered by the federal government.
Many might not know about the program, but those familiar with the process say it is straight-forward and encourage more eligible families to apply.
The American Rescue Plan established the COVID-19 Funeral Assistance Fund through the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which will reimburse up to $9,000 of funeral costs for families who lost somebody to COVID-19 at any time during the pandemic.
“The average funeral in America is only $7,700,” said Ed Michael Reggie, founder and CEO of funeralocity.com. “So it’s a very generous benefit. And there’s no means testing.”
Over 26,000 Ohioans have died from COVID-19. But only 11,849 Ohio families have applied for funeral funds through FEMA, of which 7,715 have been approved, as of Nov. 17.
Nationwide, over 770,000 Americans have died. Since FEMA began accepting applications in April, the agency has provided over $1.3 billion in funeral assistance to about 215,000 applicants.
Some of that gap can be accounted for by the fact that FEMA cannot duplicate assistance provided by other sources, such as burial insurance.
“I can tell you just from talking to funeral directors and talking to people, I think the No. 1 reason people don’t apply is ignorance that this plan exists,” Reggie said.
Melissa Sullivan, executive director of the Ohio Funeral Directors Association, said her group encourages Ohio funeral directors to share information about this opportunity with families they serve.
The other reason families might not apply is fear of red tape and not qualifying, Reggie said.
“But everyone qualifies who can produce two things to the federal government: One, a death certificate that shows that COVID contributed to the death, and two, a receipt from the funeral provider for the funeral,” he said. “That’s all you need.”
Riverside-resident Tierra Cooper lost her husband, Eberechukwu Cooper, in December after a months-long fight with COVID. She said her experience applying for about $2,000 in reimbursement for his cremation was straightforward.
“I would say it was a smooth process,” she said. “And it was very helpful. It was almost like a break that I needed because my husband was our provider and I was a homemaker. So it was a relief.”
Cooper said the FEMA employees were very empathetic and helpful.
“At the time, we still hadn’t received our taxes refund,” she said. “So I was like, I don’t know what we’re going to do. And it came right in enough time, and I was able to actually pay rent.”
Eligible applicants may apply for COVID-19 funeral assistance by calling FEMA at 844-684-6333 from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday through Friday. There is no online application.
Funeral expenses that are covered include cremation, interment, casket or urn, marker or headstone, and clergy or officiant services. While COVID-19 Funeral Assistance may be a reimbursement, applicants are not required to pay funeral expenses in full prior to receiving assistance.
Did you know kids can receive vaccines for COVID-19 and flu at the same time? A pediatrician tells us why both are important heading into winter.
WTOL November 29, 2021
Now that COVID-19 vaccines are available for kids ages five and up, flu shots may not be top of mind.
But, according to Adam Keating, MD, pediatrician for Cleveland Clinic Children’s, it’s important to vaccinate your child against the flu too.
“Influenza still is an illness that can hit children, particularly our youngest children under 3 years of age, very hard with hospitalization,” explained Dr. Keating.
Flu season is unpredictable, so we’re not sure how widespread it will be this year, but cases are starting to pop up.
Dr. Keating said it’s recommended everyone over the age of six months get a flu shot each year.
For kids ages five and up, COVID-19 vaccination is also a good idea.
According to the CDC, it’s safe for a child to receive a COVID-19 and flu shot together, or close together.
“We are able and eager to give them both together. They can be on the same day and there are no requirements between how many days are between the vaccines,” said Dr. Keating.
Once infected, kids can spread flu and COVID-19 to others who may be more susceptible to complications or severe illness.
Dr. Keating said the best way to protect your family and the community is to be vaccinated against both.
