HEREâS WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:
JUNEAU, Alaska â The acting mayor of Anchorage says Alaskaâs largest city is revoking its mask mandate, starting May 21.
Acting Mayor Austin Quinn-Davidsonâs office says masks no longer will be required in indoor or outdoor settings but that people who are not vaccinated against COVID-19 are encouraged to wear masks.
The decision follows guidance released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday for people who are vaccinated.
Quinn-Davidsonâs office says applying a mask mandate only to those who are not vaccinated in Anchorage would have created enforcement challenges and issues for businesses.
Kimberly Ballard-Washington was officially announced as Savannah State University president on Thursday, a week after being named the sole finalist for the post by the Georgia Board of Regents. Ballard-Washington had served as the school s interim president since June 2019.
Ballard-Washington shared insights about her next steps as SSU president and plans for the coming academic year in a recent interview.
What are your next steps as president? What are some of your goals that you would like to see happen at the school?
Kimberly Ballard-Washington: We re going to have to solidify the team that we have here. Because I was interim, we have a lot of people in interim positions. So we re going to have to finalize a lot of those positions. We ve already started posting positions. We re hiring right now for the chief business officer. We re also going to be looking for a chief information technology person and a provost. We have three interim deans right now. The vice president for
THE HAGUE, Netherlands As coronavirus infections decline in parts of the world and the summer holiday season tentatively begins, the Dutch government has eased travel restrictions for a group of popular vacation destinations.
Amanda Andrews reports on how Georgia cities are updating their mask mandates.
New guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says fully vaccinated adults can safely stop wearing masks indoors and outdoors. In response, cities and major institutions across the state are reconsidering their mask mandate.
Caption With the CDC s new guidance on masks, many Georgians are wondering how it will affect everyday life, like going to the grocery store. Credit: Grant Blankenship/GPB
Officials in Savannah and Columbus said their cities will continue to require masks indoors. Savannah has about 30% of the population vaccinated and a mask mandate remains in place until May 31st.
The Latest: India reports drop in cases in Delhi, Mumbai
By The Associated PressMay 15, 2021 GMT
NEW DELHI India’s two biggest cities have reported a drop in daily infections but the government is warning that the devastating surge is spreading in rural areas, where nearly two-thirds of India’s 1.4 billion people live.
India reported 326,098 new confirmed cases and 3,890 deaths in the past 24 hours, though experts say both figures are an undercount. The Health Ministry had reported 343,144 cases on Friday and 362,727 on Thursday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday warned people to take extra precautions as the virus was spreading fast in rural areas. He said the government was mobilizing all resources, including the military.