Angela Woolsey | FFXnow

Fairfax Health District has reported over 90,000 COVID-19 cases

Published October 4, 2021 at 2:00PM

An illustration of a coronavirus (via CDC/Unsplash)

With the addition of 136 cases today (Monday), the Fairfax Health District has reported a total of 90,010 COVID-19 infections since identifying its first positive case nearly 20 months ago.

Case levels in the district, which includes Fairfax County and the cities of Fairfax and Falls Church, have stayed consistent for more than a month now after surging in August due to the spread of the especially contagious Delta variant.

News

COVID cases hold steady as Fairfax County prepares for booster shots

By Angela Woolsey

Published September 27, 2021 at 2:00PM | Updated September 27, 2021 at 3:20PM

An illustration of a coronavirus (via CDC/Unsplash)

Updated at 3:20 p.m. — Booster shots of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine will be available for those who are eligible in Fairfax County starting tomorrow (Tuesday), the Fairfax County Health Department announced this afternoon.

Earlier: After seeing COVID-19 cases climb throughout August, Fairfax County seems to be finishing September at a plateau in the Delta variant-driven surge that has refilled hospitals in many parts of the country.

News

FCPS seeks to put new trial for sexual assault lawsuit on hold, potentially setting up Supreme Court appeal

By Angela Woolsey

Published September 23, 2021 at 9:30AM

Sign for Fairfax County Public Schools outside the Gatehouse Administration Center (file photo)

Fairfax County Public Schools has asked a federal appeals court to postpone an ordered retrial of a former Oakton High School student’s sexual assault lawsuit, setting up a possible escalation of the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The school system plans to file a petition for a writ of certiorari requesting that the Supreme Court take up the case, according to Public Justice, the nonprofit legal organization that represents the student, who has only been identified as Jane Doe.

News

Over 80 percent of adults in Fairfax County have gotten a COVID-19 vaccine shot

By Angela Woolsey

Published September 20, 2021 at 2:00PM

Fairfax County nurse holds a dose of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine (Staff Photo by Jay Westcott)

More than four-fifths of adults in the Fairfax Health District have gotten at least one shot of a COVID-19 vaccine, a hard-won milestone achieved after a summer of slowing demand and the arrival of the contagious Delta variant.

According to its vaccine data dashboard, which also includes information from the cities of Fairfax and Falls Church, the Fairfax County Health Department has now administered more than 1.5 million vaccine doses since it received its first shipment on Dec. 23, 2020.

News

Fairfax County salutes soldier killed during Afghanistan evacuation

By Angela Woolsey

Published September 17, 2021 at 11:30AM

A police motorcade drives down I-66 East with the hearse for Army Staff Sgt. Ryan Knauss, one of 13 U.S. military servicemembers killed in the Aug. 26 Kabul airport bombing (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

It took approximately half an hour for the police motorcade escorting the body of Army Staff Sgt. Ryan Knauss to travel the 20-mile stretch of I-66 from Gainesville to the I-495 interchange in Merrifield.

Along the way, the procession encountered dozens of Fairfax County police officers, firefighters, and residents who gathered on and under overpasses yesterday (Friday) afternoon to honor Knauss, one of 13 American servicemembers killed in the Aug. 26 bombing at Kabul’s airport during the U.S. military’s withdrawal from Afghanistan.

News

JUST IN: Flash Flood Watch issued for Fairfax County into this evening

By Angela Woolsey

Published September 16, 2021 at 3:00PM | Updated September 16, 2021 at 3:29PM

Raindrops in puddles (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Updated at 3:30 p.m. — The National Weather Service has now issued an Areal Flood Warning until 9:30 p.m. for central Fairfax County, with Reston, Vienna, Falls Church, Annandale, and Springfield among the locations that could experience flooding. Between 1 and 1.5 inches of rain have already fallen with an additional 1 to 2 inches possible.

Earlier: After a couple of relatively dry weeks, the weather in Fairfax County is about to take a turn for the rainy today (Thursday).

News

Redistricting committee races to map future Fairfax County as public input deadline looms

By Angela Woolsey

Published September 16, 2021 at 9:30AM

Redistricting Advisory Committee Providence District representative Linda Smyth discusses her proposed map for Fairfax County's magisterial districts (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

In a meeting room that more resembles a college classroom than the stateliness of the board auditorium just two floors down, 20 volunteers are redrawing the lines that divide and define Fairfax County.

Appointed by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on June 22, the 2021 Redistricting Advisory Committee (RAC) has been meeting regularly since late July, but members got their first opportunity on Monday (Sept. 13) to present the district maps they’ve created to determine the county’s leaders for the next decade.

News

Fairfax County’s COVID-19 levels bounce back up with highest single-day total since February

By Angela Woolsey

Published September 13, 2021 at 2:00PM

An illustration of a coronavirus (via CDC/Unsplash)

After a one-week drop back into “substantial” territory, Fairfax County is once again seeing high levels of COVID-19 transmission.

For the week of Sept. 5-11, the county saw 111 new cases per 100,000 residents, and 4.1% of tests came back positive for COVID-19 — the two metrics used by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Virginia Department of Health to measure the level of community spread.

Opinion

Poll: Should Fairfax County start taxing disposable plastic bags?

By Angela Woolsey

Published September 9, 2021 at 11:00AM | Updated March 15, 2024 at 2:54PM

A plastic grocery bag (via Christopher Vega on Unsplash)

The disposable plastic bags that remain ubiquitous at grocery and convenience stores could soon be subject to a five-cent tax in Fairfax County.

Under an ordinance proposed by county staff, the tax would be imposed on grocery, convenience, and drugstore retailers, rather than their customers. There would be some exceptions, including:

News

FCPS will propose letting students stream classes when pausing due to COVID-19

By Angela Woolsey

Published September 8, 2021 at 2:00PM

Fairfax County Public Schools

Two weeks into a new school year that was supposed to herald the full return of in-person learning, Fairfax County Public Schools is considering adding a new, limited option for virtual instruction in an effort to minimize disruptions related to COVID-19.

Under the proposal, which will be shared in more detail during the Fairfax County School Board’s meeting tomorrow (Thursday), students who are directed to isolate, quarantine, or pause in-person learning due a COVID-19 case would be allowed to attend their classes via live video streaming, FCPS spokesperson Julie Moult confirmed to FFXnow.