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Stories from October 20, 2020

Ramsey County moves forward with converting Bethesda Hospital to homeless shelter

Ramsey County moves forward with converting Bethesda Hospital to homeless shelter

The Ramsey County Board Tuesday unanimously agreed to move forward with an agreement that will allow the county to convert part of the complex into a 100-bed homeless shelter, blocks from the state Capitol.
by MPR News Staff

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Heavy snow shatters October records

Heavy snow shatters October records

Many locations from St. Cloud through southern Minnesota including the Twin Cities picked up more than 6 inches of snow.
by Paul Huttner

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Photos: First significant snowstorm could set records in Minnesota

Photos: First significant snowstorm could set records in Minnesota

The season’s first significant snowstorm of the year was dumping heavy amounts of precipitation in some areas of Minnesota and Wisconsin and causing slippery driving conditions in the Dakotas.
by The Associated Press

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Can you trust opinion polls? We asked a Minneapolis pollster

Can you trust opinion polls? We asked a Minneapolis pollster

Just about all of the polls in 2016 projected Hillary Clinton would win both the popular vote and the electoral college. She didn’t. Are this year’s polls any different?
by Tom Crann

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Studies point to big drop in COVID-19 death rates

Studies point to big drop in COVID-19 death rates

More hospitalized patients are surviving than early in the pandemic. Improved treatments make a big difference, but so does flattening the curve to keep hospitals from overfilling, researchers say.
by Geoff Brumfiel

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Defense attorney argues anew to move trial of ex-officers in George Floyd's killing

Defense attorney argues anew to move trial of ex-officers in George Floyd's killing

Attorney Thomas Plunkett filed a memo in the case Tuesday arguing that a confrontation following last week’s hearing in the case was evidence that the trial should be held elsewhere for safety reasons. 
by Jon Collins

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It's snowing furiously and it isn't even Halloween yet

It's snowing furiously and it isn't even Halloween yet. And on top of that we may not see the sun until after the weekend. This is an evening news update from MPR News, hosted by Tim Nelson. Music by Gary Meister.

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First-year teachers get a crash course on dealing with chaos and change in pandemic

First-year teachers get a crash course on dealing with chaos and change in pandemic

Managing classroom chaos — and anxiety — are just some of the usual challenges that come with being a first year teacher. But this year, those new teachers also have to master remote learning and managing all of the extra health protocols.
by Faye Williams

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Justice Department offers assistance to Minneapolis police

Justice Department offers assistance to Minneapolis police

Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo said he hopes the city takes advantage of the assistance offer, saying it could provide important support for training and policies.
by Jon Collins

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Game on! The World Series begins between the L.A. Dodgers and Tampa Bay Rays

Game on! The World Series begins between the L.A. Dodgers and Tampa Bay Rays

It's been a short and strange baseball season due to the coronavirus. Most of the playoffs were played at neutral sites to limit travel. Now, it's down to the Los Angeles Dodgers and Tampa Bay Rays.
by Tom Goldman and Russell Lewis

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Twin Cities upgraded to winter storm warning

Twin Cities upgraded to winter storm warning

The season’s first major winter storm is here. The heaviest part of the storm moves through the Twin Cities and southern Minnesota this afternoon. Snowfall rates in the heaviest snow bands will reach an inch per hour.
by Paul Huttner

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Wisconsin schools ‘whipsawing’ as COVID-19 hits rural districts

Wisconsin schools ‘whipsawing’ as COVID-19 hits rural districts

As infections in the state surge, some rural schools are forced to suspend in-person instruction or integrate virtual students into classrooms.

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Living in harm's way: Why most flood risk is not disclosed

Living in harm's way: Why most flood risk is not disclosed

About 15 million properties in the U.S. are prone to flooding, but patchwork and ineffective disclosure laws mean most people get little to no information about flood risk before they move.
by Rebecca Hersher

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Coronavirus cases rise to new levels in several Midwestern states

Coronavirus cases rise to new levels in several Midwestern states

Several states in the Midwest, especially those surrounding Minnesota, have been reporting growing coronavirus case numbers in recent days. Host Cathy Wurzer spoke with reporters covering the outbreaks in South Dakota and Wisconsin about how their states are dealing with the high rates of new infections.
by Cathy Wurzer and MPR News Staff

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If there's no election night winner, don't panic

If there's no election night winner, don't panic

The problem isn't with the results taking a little while to tabulate, experts say. The problem is with conspiracy theories that pop up as a result.
by Miles Parks

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AP finds most arrested in protests aren't leftist radicals

AP finds most arrested in protests aren't leftist radicals

The Department of Justice is using aggressive tactics against those it has charged in the civil unrest over systemic racism. Those people have been portrayed by President Trump as violent left-wing radicals. But an Associated Press review of thousands of pages of court documents shows most are just regular citizens caught up in the moment.
by The Associated Press

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Republicans see bright spot in voter registration push

Republicans see bright spot in voter registration push

The Republican Party has cut into Democrats' advantage in voter registration tallies across some critical presidential battleground states, a fact they point to as evidence of steady — and overlooked — enthusiasm for President Donald Trump and his party.
by The Associated Press

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Tribes make new move to shut down Dakota Access Pipeline

Tribes make new move to shut down Dakota Access Pipeline

The Standing Rock Sioux and other tribes succeeded on their first attempt, only to have an appeals court overturn U.S. District Judge James Boasberg's shutdown order earlier this year. Now, they're asking the judge to clarify his earlier ruling to satisfy the appellate judges and then to again order the line to cease operations, the Bismarck Tribune reported.
by The Associated Press

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Here we snow: 4-6 inches of snow forecast for central Minnesota

Here we snow: 4-6 inches of snow forecast for central Minnesota

Snow started falling in western Minnesota early Tuesday and will be spreading across the center of the state throughout the morning. For much of Minnesota, the snow will be heavy enough to set records.
by Nicole Mitchell

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Kao Kalia Yang started out writing her family’s refugee memoir. Now she’s sharing the journeys of others

Kao Kalia Yang started out writing her family’s refugee memoir. Now she’s sharing the journeys of others

The Minnesota author's new book, "Somewhere in the Unknown World," began when she collected her uncle’s story about fleeing Laos. Then she spoke to a Liberian hospital worker, a Karen parent from school, a Jewish singer from Ukraine — and created “a collective refugee memoir.”

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Plowable October snowfall arrives Tuesday

The season's first significant snowfall accumulation arrives for many Minnesota locations Tuesday. Much of northern Minnesota has already seen accumulating snow this month. Tuesday brings the first significant snowfall accumulations for much of central and southern Minnesota. This is an MPR News morning update for Tuesday, October 20, 2020. Hosted by Cathy Wurzer. Our theme music is by Gary Meister.

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'Where The Wild Ladies Are' is perfect Halloween reading

'Where The Wild Ladies Are' is perfect Halloween reading

Aoko Matsuda's gently supernatural story collection — all about women who are something more than they seem — gets its unearthly feel not from jump scares, but from the quality of the writing.
by Michael Schaub

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A NASA spacecraft successfully touched down on a rocky asteroid

A NASA spacecraft successfully touched down on a rocky asteroid

A NASA spacecraft successfully touched down on the skyscraper-sized asteroid 200 million miles away, in order to collect a small amount of rock and dust that can then be returned to Earth. The rocks and dust could help us understand potentially dangerous space rocks and the history of the solar system.
by Nell Greenfieldboyce

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St. John's, St. Ben's shift gears to keep students on campus

St. John's, St. Ben's shift gears to keep students on campus

COVID-19 forced colleges and universities to make major changes this year in the ways students learn and interact — and many students are taking most or even all of their courses online. But in central Minnesota, St. John's University and the College of St. Benedict decided to keep students on campus and in the classroom as much as possible.
by Kirsti Marohn

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Oct. 20 update on COVID-19 in MN: Record jump in hospital admissions; new cases climb

Oct. 20 update on COVID-19 in MN: Record jump in hospital admissions; new cases climb

More than 500 people have been hospitalized over the past week, including 100 ICU cases. The seven-day trend is now close to its late-May peak. The numbers come a day after state officials urged Minnesotans to rethink plans for big holiday gatherings with family and friends.
by MPR News Staff

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It pays to be an apprentice: 63% more

It pays to be an apprentice: 63% more

Participants in an apprenticeship program that matches employers with community colleges were able to earn substantially more after one year than their peers at community colleges, a new study found.
by Adedayo Akala

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Tom Friedman of NYT calls on Biden to form "national unity government"

Tom Friedman of NYT calls on Biden to form "national unity government"

New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman speaks at the University of Minnesota about the 2020 election and America’s future.

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Debate commission adopts new rules to mute mics

Debate commission adopts new rules to mute mics

President Donald Trump and Democrat Joe Biden will have their microphones cut off in Thursday’s debate while their rival delivers their opening two-minute answer to each of the debate topics.
by The Associated Press

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