New Police Grads will Ensure Virus Compliance, County Launches Childcare for First Responders
Without the usual fanfare, 60 cadets graduated from the police academy today and have become sworn members of the Suffolk County Police Department.
The officers, which include six people who are fluent in Spanish, will be a part of a group called Together Ensuring Compliance, or TEC, according to police officials. They will be “visible on the street” and will have increased foot patrols and will be in parks and shopping centers to ensure that businesses that are supposed to be closed, while making sure they educate the population about maintaining social distancing. Geraldine Hart, the Commissioner of the Suffolk County Police Department, made the announcement on County Executive Steve Bellone’s (D) daily call with reporters.
At the same time, Bellone announced the launch of the Suffolk Childcare Consortium, which is a free childcare program for first responders, medical professionals transit workers and, where space permits, other essential workers. The program will be open Monday to Friday, from 7 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and enrollment for those battling the coronavirus outbreak will be on a first come, first served basis and will be limited based on space and staff.
Residents with questions about he consortium should call 311.
The new childcare program is available to the following districts:
- Babylon School District — Babylon Elementary School
- Commack School District — Sawmill Intermediate School
- Connetquot School District – Cherokee Street Elementary School
- Deer Park School District – John F. Kennedy Intermediate School
- Harborfields School Districts – Thomas J. Lahey Elementary School
- Hauppauge School District — Pines Elementary School
- Huntington School District — Jefferson Primary School
- Lindenhurst School District — Albany Avenue Elementary School
- Middle Country School District – Jericho Elementary School
- Miller Place School District — Andrew Muller Primary School
- Northport School District — Pulaski Road Elementary School
- Sachem School District– Nokomis School Elementary School
To qualify for the program, children must be between pre-K and sixth grade. Students in the program can work on their school’s long distance learning requirements during the day. The program is run by SCOPE education services and will have trained childcare. The staff will check on the health of the children regularly. Anyone with a fever or who demonstrates any sign of illness will not be allowed in the program.
Parents can register their children through www.scopeonline.us.
Meanwhile, the numbers of cases of the virus, hospitalization for it, and fatalities associated with it continues to climb. There are 3,385 cases, which is up by 650 in the last 24 hours. As of this morning, there were also 331 hospitalizations of people with the virus, with 119 in the Intensive Care Unit.
For the ninth straight day, Bellone reported fatalities connected with the virus. Eight people, all of whom had underlying medical condition, passed away. Those who died were: a man in his 80’s at Stony Brook Hospital, a woman in her 80’s at Huntington Hospital, a woman in her 90’s at St. Catherine’s hospital, a man in his late 40’s at LIJ, a woman in her 80’s at Huntington Hospital, a woman in her 80’s at Huntington Hospital this morning, a man in his 60’s at Stony Brook University Hospital, and a woman in her 80’s at Good Samaritan Hospital.
The total number of people who have died from coronavirus related issues in the county is now 30.
Bellone shared his thoughts and prayers with the families.
“This drives home the point of why we have to do this, why all of us have an important role to play in helping to reduce that number,” Bellone said. “Our actions will determine how high that number goes.”
