#BILLYPENNGRAM OF THE DAY
Lifting spirits in Manayunk
(photo by @lauren_lynch)
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Want to see your photo here? Tag #billypenngram on Instagram
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More Pa. charges in Capitol riot, including alleged laptop thief
The Bidens spent their MLK Day of Service in Philly volunteering with Philabundance, where they left chalkboard notes of hope and thanks. Meanwhile, federal officials charged more Pa. residents for their roles in the Capitol riot, including the person feds think stole Speaker Pelosi's laptop. The Harrisburg woman, who is still at large, allegedly planned to send the computer to a friend in Russia, the Inquirer reports. Others charged or arrested include a retired Delco firefighter and a former State Police cadet from Lehigh County.
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Vaccine rollout confusion: People are skipping the line
Without coordination at the federal level, confusion abounds over who gets the vaccine when — and it looks like many organizations in Philly aren't following city guidelines. Links for health care workers to sign up at Rite Aid are being widely shared, the Inquirer reports, and some who successfully got vaccinated at the Convention Center didn't meet any of the phase 1a requirements, per CBS3. Penn's med school is also insisting its early round will include faculty and staff who aren't patient-facing. We're working on a deeper look at this, so tell us: Did you get the vaccine before your phase? If you reach out, we'll protect your anonymity.
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Philly teen's music video carries MLK's words into the future
Among the multitude of tributes yesterday to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is an impressively catchy and insightful song and music video produced by a Philly teen. Building on a project started a year ago, when he was inspired by a King quote, 10th grader Jehmir Nixon wrote and produced "Things That Matter," which urges people to speak out against racial injustices. Read the background and check out the tune in this BP story by another Philly teen, WHYY Education intern Lamar Reed.
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"I love what you do, the people you serve, and I want your voice to continue on."
— new BP member Elizabeth A. 💟
Things that won't change: We don't have a paywall and there's no subscription fee. Our nonprofit newsroom runs on reader support. If you value our coverage, please join as a member today. Any amount helps, and just $5/month means more than you'd think.
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Philly Quizzo Question of the Day 🎲
When the Zoo Balloon was first introduced at the Philadelphia Zoo, it was intended as a temporary attraction. What year did it debut?
(Answer below; take the most recent online quiz here)
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Tracking COVID-19
At a glance (vs. a week ago)
Pennsylvania: cases ↓, positivity ↓
Philadelphia: cases ↓, positivity ↓
Summary: The city doesn't report new data on weekends, so the stats below are a few days old, but the trends are still mostly positive — except for the pace of vaccination, which everyone hopes will pick up.
Vaccine
- Philly has completed 61.0k partial vaccinations (3.3% of the population), and 12.9k total vaccinations (0.7%). The city is giving an average of 2,248 doses daily. [phila.gov]
- Outside the city, Pennsylvania has completed 386k partial vaccinations (3.4% of the population), and 62.1k total vaccinations (0.6%). The state is giving an average of 20,276 doses daily. [pa.gov]
Cases
- Philadelphia's rolling average is 538 new cases/day (13% lower than a week ago) out of an average 6,500 daily tests. • The city has recorded 103k positives out of 1.21M tests given. • Positivity rate in Philly is averaging 7.3%, one and a quarter point down from a week ago. [phila.gov]
- Pa.'s rolling average is 7,241 new COVID cases/day, 14% lower than a week ago. • There have been 772k total positives out of 4.25M people tested. • Last week, statewide positivity rate averaged 14.4%, six-tenths of a point down from the week prior. [pa.gov]
Hospitalizations + deaths
- In the city, 538 people are hospitalized with COVID, with 98 on ventilators. • Since March, 2,731 Philadelphians are known to have died of the disease. • Over the past seven days at least 29 patients have died, 61% fewer than a week ago. [phila.gov]
- Statewide, 4,582 people are hospitalized with COVID, including 950 in the ICU. • Since March, 19,390 Pennsylvanians are known to have died of the disease. • Over the past seven days 1,620 patients have died, 10% more than a week ago. [pa.gov]
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Sponsor message
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RECAP: What else happened?
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Sponsor message
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Philly Quizzo answer: 2002. The attraction has been grounded several times over the decades, but its popularity has kept it alive.
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MAYOR WATCH: Jan. 19, 2021
It's Tuesday, so Mayor Kenney joins the city's weekly coronavirus briefing with Philly Managing Director Alexander and Health Commissioner Farley (1 p.m.). You can watch live on Twitter or Facebook, or catch the recording later on YouTube. |
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ON THE CALENDAR
🎲 Billy Penn event: How well do you know this city? Join us live on Zoom at our monthly news and history quiz — winning team gets a prize. Philly Quizzo is free to play, but RSVP is required. (6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 27)
🛬 The Nationalities Service Center hosts a virtual inauguration party to celebrate and draw attention to Biden's promise to revamp the U.S. refugee program. (3:30 to 5 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 21)
⛲ Looking for input on the design of the Bethel Burying Ground Memorial in Queen Village, the city hosts a series of virtual public info sessions. (6 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 19; 6:30 p.m. Wednesday Jan. 20; 2 p.m. Saturday Jan. 23)
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