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COVID-19 Response: What’s New?

May 26, 2020

Now that we are at the beginning of a small reopening, some people are taking it into their own hands to provide a little something special to their communities. In episode 64, we learn about a new online radio station designed to give live performers a platform to connect to their audience in a fresh way. We hear about how popular the Sunday cruise on the mother road has been since it’s naturally socially distant but still all about community. Mobile drive-in movies are back. Plus, we dive into the symbolism of the many moths newly emerging in our city, sometimes feeling like a manifestation of our collective anxiety.

We hear from John Romero of the Drifters Car Club about cruising and organizing lowrider parades to honor 2020 graduates and front-line health care workers.

Alec Cameron talks mobile drive-in movies, Reel Big Flix, and also his motivations for restoring a local playground overrun with detritus. He was just named Albuquerque’s volunteer of the month by Mayor Tim Keller.

KUNM’s Ty Bannerman talks to Marya Errin Jones of The Tannex about how her Do-It-Yourself venue is closed, and how she started Tannex Radio to amplify and keep connections between regional performers.

Host and reporter Nash Jones brings us a story about the moths—what their presence is like for people during the pandemic, the science of why they’re here right now and what they want, the historic symbology of moths. And they interview the administrators of the Facebook group “A Group Where We Pretend To Be Moths In An Eclipse Of The Moths.”

And A News Update: In New Mexico, the coronavirus transmission rate overall is down to 1.12—which means each person with the virus spreads it to 1.12 other people on average. That number is better than the target set by the state for this time.  Read this and more from yesterday’s public address from the Santa Fe Reporter.

If things keep going well, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said, there may be a partial reopening of dine-in restaurants, salons and gyms on June 1, but to do that, people have to stay home now and be serious about wearing masks in public.

There is a jump in transmission in the Southern part of the state, according to Human Services Secretary David Scrase, and it might be because of people traveling to and from Texas.

State officials reported 134 more confirmed cases, making the total 6,317. Seven people died, bringing the death toll to 283. Half of those deaths happened in McKinley and San Juan Counties in the Northwestern corner of the state, the Journal reports.

Just a reminder: There are no longer any state restrictions on who can get tested or free through the Department of Health. And the hotline you need is 1-855-600-3453.

 We’re keeping a complete list of the resources and volunteer opportunities that we find for each episode at bit.ly/YNMGhub. And here’s what we got from today.

How are things going for you? We want to know. Share your quarantine stories by calling: (505) 218-7084 and leaving us a message. We could roll them into a future episode.

This segment is part of the “Your New Mexico Government” Project (#YourNMgov), a collaboration between New Mexico PBS, KUNM Radio, and the Santa Fe Reporter. This endeavor is funded by the New Mexico Local Journalism Fund with public media support provided by the Thornburg Foundation.