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Virginia breaks record, reporting 602 COVID-19 cases in 24 hours
Virginia has seen its largest one-day increase in confirmed COVID-19 cases — 602 more since Thursday, according to the Virginia Department of Health’s update Friday, April 17. The state has 7,491 cases. The previous one-day record, set on Saturday, was 568. The health department also reported 231 deaths, 1,221 hospitalizations and 48,997 people tested for […]
Altria CEO Howard Willard retires
Altria Group Inc. Chairman and CEO Howard Willard, who took a medical leave of absence in March after testing positive for COVID-19, has retired from his position heading up the Henrico County-based Fortune 500 parent company of cigarette manufacturer Philip Morris USA, effective April 14. Altria’s Board of Directors elected W[...]
Fairfax County establishes $2.5M small business loan fund
Fairfax County announced Thursday that it has established the Fairfax County Small Business COVID-19 Recovery Fund — a $2.5 million fund to support small businesses that have suffered economic hardship during the pandemic. The recovery fund will make no-interest loans of up to $20,000 to eligible businesses. In order to apply, the small business must […]
More than 100k Virginians filed for unemployment last week
More than 100,000 Virginians filed initial claims for unemployment last week, according to a news release Thursday afternoon from the Virginia Unemployment Commission. During the week that ended on April 11, Virginia saw 104,619 workers file for unemployment, bringing the most recent four-week total to 410,762. If 67,000 more Vi[...]
Amazon.com Inc. hires 3.3k+ Virginians, more to come
Amazon.com Inc. has hired more than 3,300 employees in Virginia to meet the increased demand for home deliveries during the coronavirus crisis, the e-commerce giant announced Thursday. The hirings are part of Amazon’s initiative to create more than 100,000 full- and part-time jobs in the U.S. in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s also more […]
SBA Paycheck Protection Program runs dry, as expected
The Small Business Administration’s (SBA) $349 billion Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) relief fund officially ran dry Thursday morning, as expected. “The SBA is currently unable to accept new applications for the Paycheck Protection Program based on available appropriations funding,” according to the SBA’s PPP page. Small businesses that receive the forgivable loans are allowed to […][...]
Dairy farms worry about staying afloat during pandemic
With milk prices dropping to the lowest point in years during the COVID-19 pandemic, Virginia dairy industry representatives fear that as many as 30 to 40 of the commonwealth’s 450 dairy farms could be forced out of business by the end of the year. The dairy industry in Virginia has been in decline for several […]
Virginia coronavirus cases nearly reach 6,900
4:50 p.m., April 16 update: According to the Henrico County Health Department, another resident at Canterbury Rehabilitation & Healthcare Clinic has died. The number of fatal COVID-19 cases there is now 46. 1 p.m., April 16 update: The West Piedmont Health District, which covers the city of Martinsville and the counties of Franklin, Henry and Patrick, […]
SBA Paycheck Protection Program funds could run out by Thursday
The Small Business Administration’s (SBA) $349 billion Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) relief fund is expected to be exhausted by early Thursday. Since the application process for the fully forgivable loans opened on April 3, Virginia banks have been flooded with nearly 30,000 applications totaling $6.6 billion worth of requests from small businesses hurt by the […]
The show must not go on
Abingdon’s Barter Theatre – the nation’s oldest Actors’ Equity Union theater – has closed the curtain on its spring season. The theater, which opened in 1933 during the Great Depression, announced March 19 it would furlough 87 of its employees, then days later furloughed six more. This left a skeleton crew of 11 to fun[...]
Coronavirus fund distributes $1M+ in grants to Central Virginia organizations
RICHMOND, Va. — Funds are being released from a collective, $4.2 million pool intended to help groups provide resources during the COVID-19 pandemic. Twenty-five regional organizations are receiving more than $1.1 million in grants. The grantees fall under four categories: safety net clinics, food access organizations, housing and education. The pool of money was created […]
Banks see online banking outages as stimulus checks drop
Some of the top banks in Virginia in terms of 2019 deposits reported issues with customers being unable to access their online banking accounts Wednesday — the same day that millions of Americans expected to receive federal stimulus checks of at least $1,200 deposited into their accounts. “Downtime for banking systems is[...]
