A helpful reminder painted on a stone seen outside the CVS pharmacy in Little Silver Monday. (Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Governor Phil Murphy unveiled plans to broaden testing and tracing for COVID-19 Tuesday.
The paired approaches, he said, offer New Jersey its “best chance at catching and containing” the illness, which has now claimed more than 9,500 lives, including 15 more in Monmouth County.
State Senator Declan O’Scanlon at an event in Little Silver with Assemblywoman Serena DiMaso and Senator Vin Gopal in early 2018.(Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
With COVID-19 fatalities and cases dropping, Governor Phil Murphy dismissed a call for “rebellion” against his continued near-lockdown of New Jersey’s economic activity Monday.
Meantime, 13th-district state Senator Declan O’Scanlon of Little Silver said his Saturday-night tweet calling on the public to “defy” Murphy’s “stay-home” and other restrictions said he was being “mostly tongue-in-cheek” with the exhortation.
Red Bank’s cumulative COVID-19 case total has continued to increase while Fair Haven’s and Little Silver’s have remained relatively flat for weeks. (Source: Monmouth County Freeholders. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
New COVID-19 deaths and cases continued a recent slowing trend in New Jersey over the weekend, Governor Phil Murphy’s administration reported Sunday.
At the same time, thousands of new infections were recorded, with Red Bank’s total remaining on stubborn incline.
By JOHN T. WARD
A four-year-old New Jersey child became the first state resident under the age of 18 to die from COVID-19, Governor Phil Murphy said at his daily crisis briefing Friday.
A lone man practiced soccer at Red Bank’s Eastside Park last Saturday, the day borough parks and others across the state reopened after a three-week shutdown. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Amid a slowdown in COVID-19 fatalities statewide, Monmouth County lost 11 more residents to the pandemic, for a total of 428, the New Jersey Health Department reported Thursday.
At the same time, the death toll in the county’s longterm care facilities shot up by 39 victims, according to state data.
The state says nine deaths have now been associated with the Hackensack Meridian at Red Bank longterm care facility on Chapin Avenue. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Monmouth County’s death toll in the COVID-19 pandemic is now above 400 victims, the New Jersey Health Department reported Wednesday.
With 19 added in the latest update to the department’s database, 417 county residents have now died in the crisis, two-thirds of them living or working in longterm care facilities, according to state data.
The death toll from the virus continues to rise both in Monmouth County and statewide. (Data source: COVID19.nj.gov. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Sixteen more Monmouth County resident deaths were added to the COVID-19 pandemic toll Tuesday, the New Jersey Health Department reported Tuesday.
The county has now lost 398 residents, as the state’s fatality total rose by 334, to 8,244, according to the department’s database.
Kayakers navigated the Navesink River railroad bridge near West Front Street in Red Bank Sunday evening. (Photo by Trish Russoniello. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Governor Phil Murphy said New Jersey schools statewide would not to resume in-person operations for the rest of the current school year Monday.
Also, state resident “passed the test” on social-distancing practices at newly reopened parks up and down the state over the weekend, Murphy said at his daily briefing on the COVID-19 crisis.
Well-spaced customers, all wearing facial coverings, wait for takeout orders at Juanito’s restaurant on Monmouth Street in Red Bank Saturday evening. (Photo by Allan Bass. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Ten more Monmouth deaths attributed to COVID-19 were among 129 statewide added to New Jersey’s toll the pandemic, Governor Phil Murphy’s administration announced Sunday.
Other key indicators suggested continued slowing of the pandemic’s impact.
Governor Phil Murphy ended his Saturday briefing by donning a State Police face covering. (YouTube screengrab. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
With 1,804 New Jersey residents added to the COVID-19 pandemic toll, Governor Phil Murphy wrapped up what he called “as tough a week as it relates to fatalities as we have had” in the crisis.
At the same time, “all 0f the important metrics in our hospitals continue to show positive trends,” he said at his daily briefing Saturday.
Jim Fitzmaurice’s newest seasonal mural at Fair Haven Hardware added a burst of spring color to a gray morning Friday. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
[See UPDATE below]
By JOHN T. WARD
Facing a favorable weather forecast and 9 million New Jerseyans with cabin fever, Governor Phil Murphy returned repeatedly to a single topic at his daily briefing on the COVID-19 crisis Friday: the reopening of parks on Saturday.
A runner had the grandstand at Red Bank Regional in Little Silver all to herself for some socially distanced stair-climbing Tuesday. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Four-hundred-sixty more New Jersey residents have died in the COVID-19 pandemic, Governor Phil Murphy reported Thursday.
The increase, to 7,228, was by far the single largest jump in fatalities reported since the crisis began seven weeks ago. More →
Saliva testing for COVID-19 is expected to be available in Red Bank next week, the Visiting Nurse Association of Central Jersey said Thursday.
The test, developed at Rutgers, is expected to help rapidly expand detection of the coronavirus-based illness.
A deer at Hartshorne Woods in Middletown last October. The park is to reopen Saturday following Murphy’s action. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
[See UPDATE below]
By JOHN T. WARD
Governor Phil Murphy rescinded his three-week shutdown of parks Wednesday while threatening to reverse course again if social-distancing guidelines are not maintained.
At his daily briefing on the COVID-19 crisis, Murphy also weighed in on an aborted plan by the Red Bank Regional board of ed to meet in person, saying his orders on public gatherings are the only ones that matter.
Governor Phil Murphy unveiling his Restart and Recovery Commission Tuesday. (YouTube screengrab. Click to enlarge.)
[See UPDATE below]
By JOHN T. WARD
Governor Phil Murphy spent much of his daily briefing on the COVID-19 crisis Tuesday talking about ways to emerge from it and restart the New Jersey economy.
Still, he steered clear of setting dates, and appointed a 21-member commission to advise him on the matter.
Governor Phil Murphy at Monday’s crisis briefing. Below, a summary of his “Restart and Recovery” plan. (YouTube screengrab. Click to enlarge.)
[See UPDATE below]
By JOHN T. WARD
Governor Phil Murphy outlined a strategy for releasing New Jersey from the five-week-old COVID-19 near lockdown Monday.
Rather than specific dates, he set loose benchmarks for testing, contact tracing and more to prevent a resurgence of disease before he lifts a “stay home” executive order he issued March 21.
By JOHN T. WARD
For the first time in nearly a month, Governor Phil Murphy’s administration reported fewer than 100 new deaths related to COVID-19 Sunday.
A crushing need for ventilators envisioned earlier this month under a possible worst-case scenario has not occurred, and demand has begun to ease, officials said. (Source: COVID19.nj.gov. Click to enlarge.)
[See UPDATE below]
By JOHN T. WARD
New Jersey officials disclosed another day of encouraging data in the war on COVID-19 Saturday.
“It wasn’t that long ago that we were talking about a worst-case scenario” of some 36,000 residents needing hospitalization in a short time frame, swamping the healthcare system, Governor Phil Murphy said said at his daily briefing on the pandemic.
Health Commissioner Judy Persichilli warned New Jersey residents that household cleaning products should not be “ingested or injected.” (April 20 pool photo by Kevin Sanders. Click to enlarge.)
[See UPDATE below]
By JOHN T. WARD
While the deaths of 252 more New Jerseyans were added to the COVID-19 toll Friday, state officials pointed to what they saw as 10 days of encouraging data in the fight to tame the crisis.
“There’s no question things are getting better,” said Governor Phil Murphy, but “we’re not out of the woods yet.”
Delicate tree blossoms added spritzes of color to the greenery along Lake Avenue on the Red Bank-Fair Haven border Thursday. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
New Jersey’s ongoing battle to quell the COVID-19 pandemic “has worked incredibly well,” a top health official at Rutgers University said Thursday.
At the same time, Governor Phil Murphy emphasized the need to ramp up testing for the coronavirus so the infection can be further managed.
A lovely sunset on Harding Road in Red Bank Tuesday evening served up a reminder that springtime continues without regard to the pandemic. (Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
With many measures showing improvement in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, Governor Phil Murphy began laying the groundwork Wednesday for New Jersey’s defense against a second wave in coming months.
Though Fair Haven’s parks remain open, the basketball hoops at Sportsman’s Field are wrapped in plastic fencing to prevent usage. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
[See UPDATE below]
By JOHN T. WARD
Governor Phil Murphy reported the single greatest loss of life in New Jersey’s battle against COVID-19 Tuesday.
At the same time, officials “continue to see a trend emerging” of stabilizing strains on the healthcare system, he said at his daily briefing on the pandemic.
The Atrium at Navesink Harbor, at center and right, has seen four COVID-19-related resident deaths, the state health department reported. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
[See UPDATE below]
By JOHN T. WARD
Several key measures showed continued improvement in the battle against COVID-19, Governor Phil Murphy said Monday.
Meantime, his administration began releasing data showing the pandemic’s impact on individual longterm care facilities, including 8 deaths in Red Bank.
The Shrewsbury River, as seen looking south from the Route 36 Joe Azzolina Bridge Sunday afternoon. (Photo by Trish Russoniello. Click to enlarge.)
[See UPDATE below]
By JOHN T. WARD
The pace of new deaths from COVID-19 appeared to slow and other indicators also suggested improvement, data released by Governor Phil Murphy’s administration showed Sunday.
The Wharf Avenue entrance to Marine Park in Red Bank, which remains closed along with all borough parks. (Photo by Trish Russoniello. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Governor Phil Murphy reported “undeniable” progress in New Jersey’s battle to quell the spread of COVID-19 Saturday.
He also blasted an Atlantic County official as “irresponsible” for calling for a reopening of the state’s economy “without restrictions.”