KANSAS CITY, Mo. — We have been tracking the spread of COVID-19 in the Kansas City area since the start of the pandemic.
Whether it's stories about how we bounce back through our Rebound KC effort, important information as school resumes or critical information about the November election, trust 41 Action News to keep you informed.
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Updates on the spread of the virus and how it is affecting the metro can be found below for Sept. 17.
5:42 p.m. | Missouri added 1,982 new COVID-19 cases, the second-most for a single day in state history, on Thursday based on reports from state and local health departments.
Missouri, which now has 110,993 confirmed coronavirus cases, also added 26 new deaths. There have been 1,904 deaths in Missouri attributed to COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic, including at least 20 on seven days in September.
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment doesn’t report statewide stats on Thursdays, but local health departments announced 325 new cases.
There were four new deaths announced in the seven-county Kansas City metro — two in Johnson County and on in Leavenworth County on the Kansas side and one in Jackson County on the Missouri side. —TP
5:31 p.m. | Kearney High School and Kearney Middle School area dealing with fallout related to COVID-19.
The Kearney School District was notified Wednesday that a player from Smithville’s football team, which beat the Bulldogs 28-10 in a game last Friday, tested positive for COVID-19.
Three Kearney football players were identified as close contacts.
A student who attended classes at the middle school also tested positive for COVID-19, the Kearney district announced Thursday.
There were 16 students identified as close contacts. —TP
5:15 p.m. | Ray County, which is located northeast of the Kansas City metropolitan area, announced its first death from COVID-19 on Thursday.
The deceased was a man over age 65 who tested positive for the virus in early September, according to the Ray County Health Department.
There are 153 confirmed cases in the county, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. —TP
4:40 p.m. | Clinton High School has canceled upcoming athletic events against Pleasant Hill, including Friday's football game, because of COVID-19 concerns. —AW
2:30 p.m. | The Johnson County Board of County Commissioners voted today to extend the local mask mandate until Oct. 15. The board's decision keeps the county in line with Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly's emergency declaration, which the State Finance Council voted to extend last week. —AW
12:11 p.m. | The Blue Valley School District announced that due to COVID-19, from now on only the immediate family of student athletes will be able to watch sporting events in person. The district is installing cameras so that all levels of sports can be live streamed online. There will not be any congregating allowed in parking lots our outside of sporting venues. -KB
11:30 a.m. | The Kansas City, Missouri, Health Department said Thursday that it has directed 10 people to quarantine after they may have been exposed to COVID-19 at the Chiefs' home opener on Sept. 10.
One person in the group's box tested positive for the virus the day after the game, according to the health department.
Also Thursday, reports said that no Chiefs or Houston Texans player had tested positive after the game. One Arrowhead Stadium groundskeeper tested positive but had no contact with players, according to the report. —AW
8:57 a.m. | New unemployment claims in the U.S. were down to 860,000 last week, but are still historically high. -KB
8:43 a.m. | University of Kansas Health System officials gave their daily COVID-19 update. -KB
7:30 a.m. | Just starting your day? We’ve got you covered with a quick look at what you need to know. -KB
7:15 a.m. | Public transportation has suffered a sharp decrease in ridership nationwide. Estimates show ridership was down 90-95 percent early on during the pandemic and is still down 75 percent in many places. Public transit is also losing money with fewer people riding and paying fares, sales tax taking a hit and losing support from state and local support as other places take hits too. -KB
7 a.m. | Pest control companies are hiring in Kansas City. People who are out of work and looking for a new career can get hands-on training and a stable income with companies around the metro. -KB
Previous coverage:
March 2020 updates
April 2020 updates
May 2020 updates
June 2020 updates
July 2020 updates
August 2020 updates
Tuesday, Sept. 1
Wednesday, Sept. 2
Thursday, Sept. 3
Friday, Sept. 4
Monday, Sept. 7
Tuesday, Sept. 8
Wednesday, Sept. 9
Thursday, Sept. 10
Friday, Sept. 11
Monday, Sept. 14
Tuesday, Sept. 15
Wednesday, Sept. 16
