Briefing 4/16: Trump Accuses NYC Of Inflating Death Toll, Retail Tenants Want Help With Rent

People in line at The Campaign Against Hunger food pantry in Brooklyn. (Photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)

Good morning! We hope you are all staying well, healthy, and happy. Here are the new numbers for today.

As of 2 p.m. yesterday, there were 111,424 positive confirmed coronavirus cases in NYC. There were 6,840 confirmed coronavirus related deaths in the City. There were also 4,059 probable coronavirus deaths (people who have died not in the hospital or those who were never tested), bringing the total to over 10,000. Please continue staying at home!
President Donald Trump accused NYC of inflating its coronavirus death toll after the City began to include deaths of people who were never tested, increasing the number of deaths to over 10k. “I see this morning where New York added 3,000 [sic] deaths because they died. Rather than [a] heart attack, they say heart attack caused by this,” he said at his press conference.
Retail tenants are requesting rent help from their landlords “in droves as the pandemic rages on and forces many stores to shut down indefinitely,” The Real Deal reported.
After at least 12 elderly people died in two NYCHA complexes in Brownsville, Borough President Eric Adams went by to deliver PPE to tenants, ABC7 reported.
NYC detective Robert Cordona who overcame 9/11 related cancer, died from the coronavirus. According to Fox News, he was a great detective who left behind an 8-year-old son.
The Daily News profiled Gina Torres, a radiologic technologist at Wyckoff Heights Hospital, on how she’s helping fight against the coronavirus. “The amount of work is just tremendous. I’ve never seen anything like this. We have to mentally prepare to do the best we can in the limited amount of time we have, because there’s always another patient waiting,” she said.
Governor Andrew Cuomo has mandated that everyone wear a face covering when going outside when they are not able to maintain social distancing.
Remember, Tax Day has been postponed to July 15.
NYC council members are asking business leaders to chip in to save the slashed Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP). “Budget cuts will be an unfortunate reality this year, but when we’re talking about 75,000 youth and their families who will lose this opportunity, we need to get creative and figure it out,” Council Member Justin Brannan told the Daily News.
A 26-year-old old allegedly mutilated his dad in their Dyker Heights home, including by disemboweling him. He then went to the local bagel shop drenched in blood and confessed to the cops, the Post reported.
There will be $221 million in budget cuts to the DOE. Mayor Bill de Blasio is suspending two programs that provide guidance and college counselors to middle and high school students, emphasizing that the city must focus on basic issues of food security and health care. And individual school budgets are taking a hit, Chalkbeat reported.
Project Balloon Bomb brings joy and color to Brooklyn streets amid the pandemic, we reported yesterday.
To support small businesses amid the coronavirus pandemic, two Brooklynites launched Flatbush Thrives, a comprehensive website that connects Flatbush business owners and service providers with federal, state, and local resources to keep their businesses alive, we reported.