Signal Tribune Your Weekly Community Newspaper
VOL. XLIII NO. 53
East Coast motorcycle duo set up shop in Zaferia neighborhood see page 3
Serving Bixby Knolls, California Heights, Los Cerritos, Wrigley and Signal Hill
Friday, December 31, 2021
2021
COVID-19
A YEAR IN PHOTOS
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Richard H. Grant | Signal Tribune
Long Beach resident Jeff Bartholemy receives his Moderna COVID-19 booster shot at the Houghton Park mobile vaccine clinic on Nov. 22, 2021. His first two shots were the Pfizer vaccine, but he decided to mix-and-match for his booster.
LA County health officials warn against large New Year’s gatherings as case numbers surge rK isten a F rrah Naeem Staff Writer
4 1: The death of Mona Rodriguez, Family members of Mona Rodriguez, an 18-year old mother shot by an LBUSD school safety officer in September, listen to a speaker broadcasting a LBUSD Board of Education meeting on Oct. 6, 2021. The family asked the board to fire the officer who shot Rodriguez and reform their safety protocols. The officer was charged with murder on Dec. 8. (Photo by Richard H. Grant) 2: Anti-vaccine protests, An anti-vaccine protester holds signs outside the LBUSD headquarters building during a Board of Education meeting on Oct. 6, 2021. Long Beach Parents United organized a protest against vaccine mandates after Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a statewide requirement for students to get the COVID-19 vaccine to attend school once approved by the FDA. (Photo by Richard H. Grant) 3: Mortuaries inundated by COVID-19 deaths, McKenzie Mortuary Services owner Ken McKenzie takes a call in his office in January 2021. His mortuary reached capacity in January of this year due to increased deaths due to COVID-19, forcing him to tell families to call back in a week. He had to order a third 20-foot refridgerated unit to store the overflow of bodies. (Photo by Emma DiMaggio) 4: Residents gather to protest restrictive Texas abortion law, Protesters fill up the steps and sidewalk around the George Deukmejian Courthouse during a rally against new Texas abortion laws on Oct. 2, 2021. The march took place a month after Senate Bill 8, prohibiting abortions past 6 weeks and financially incentivizing people to turn in those who acted in support of abortions. The Supreme Court upheld the bill after its passage. (Photo by Richard H. Grant) see more photos on pages 4 and 5
Los Angeles County reported 20,198 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, Dec. 30—marking one of the highest daily counts recorded in the county since the pandemic began. According to a statement by LA County Public Health on Dec. 29, in the last week the number of reported cases increased 91% from 8,633 to 16,510. The same statement also said that test positivity rates have jumped from 8.7% to 17.6% and that daily hospitalizations are now over 30%, going from 770 to 1,069. An additional 25 deaths were confirmed Dec. 29, according to LA County Public Health. Out of the 25 victims, 21 had underlying health conditions. One of the 25 deaths was reported by the City of Long Beach. There have been a total of 1,075 deaths caused by COVID-19 in Long Beach since the pandemic began. Out of the 25 people who died from the virus, one person was between the ages of 30 and 49, six were between the ages of 50 and 64, ten were between the ages of 65 and 79 and seven were over the age of 80. see COVID SURGE page 2