Briefing 7/1: Beaches Are Open Today, More Shootings & Testing Sewage For Coronavirus

The month of June has finally ended and we are now in July! The coronavirus pandemic is still out there, so please continue to wear face coverings and keep a distance.

• Emergency personnel are currently on scene of a building collapse at Court Street & Union Street in Brooklyn. We will bring you more information as we get it.
• Indoor dining, which was supposed to be included in the July 6 Phase 3 reopening, will be postponed indefinitely, the Mayor announced.
• Activist and organizer Whitney Hu is running for City Council in District 38. We profiled her today.
• “Brooklyn city-run medical center pledged to continue providing chemo and radiology as protest loomed — but patients must travel to Manhattan for surgeries,” THE CITY reported.
• The Brass Queens, a band, builds a new fan base on Brooklyn streets amid the pandemic, WCBS 880 reported.
• “Medics who came from other states to help New York as the coronavirus ravaged the city in March found themselves under constant GPS surveillance by the company they worked for — and even had their sex lives restricted by their employer, according to a class-action lawsuit filed in Brooklyn,” the Daily News reported.
• “Police in Brooklyn are investigating four shootings that happened in just over 90 minutes in Flatbush and Crown Heights and a total of six in all on Tuesday,” ABC7 reported.
• New York City considers testing sewage for coronavirus, the Wall Street Journal reported. “Analysis of wastewater could serve as an early detection system and get ahead of outbreaks.”
• The NYPD’s budget has been slashed by $1 billion. But no one is pleased, the NY Times reported.