Palacio Podcast
Margaret Ruiz is My Sister. She Lives in A COVID-19 Hot Spot
Margaret Ruiz is my sister. She and her husband live in the Forest Hills section of Queens, New York. The borough of Queens is an epicenter for COVID-19. As of May 10, the number of infections in Queens was 55,380 out of a total citywide of 178,766. The death count in Queens is 4,455. Confirmed deaths in New York City citywide are 14,753 plus another 5,178 in probable deaths related to COVID-19. Some 44,812 people have been hospitalized.
The rest of our family live in the Bronx (40,689 infections and 3,177 deaths) and Brooklyn (40,689 infections and 4,460 deaths). Forest Hills is described as a mostly residential neighborhood in the central portion of the borough of Queens in New York City. The New York Times has described it as, “City Life in a Suburban Setting.” The Times says the neighborhood boasted “…relatively reasonable housing prices, excellent transportation, shopping and proximity to parks.”
Main boulevards that intersect through it are usually filled with people, shops, cars, and buses. Now, like so many other sections of New York City, the streets are relatively empty and quiet.
Margaret Ruiz spoke with palaciomagazine.com via Zoom one evening several weeks ago about the fearful beginnings of the pandemic in New York City and the constant reality of blaring ambulance sirens on their way to a nearby hospital.
UPDATE: The New York Times reported on May 10 the following from Mayor Bill de Blasio’s daily briefing:
- “At least 260 city employees have died from complications of the coronavirus, Mr. de Blasio said.”
- “The city will increase the number of city employees acting as “social distancing ambassadors” to 2,300, up from 1,000. The move comes after criticism that city police were unfairly enforcing such rules.”
- “As of May 8, the number of new coronavirus patients hospitalized held steady at 69, the same as the prior day. The number of patients in ICU treatment was 540, down slightly from 559 the day before.”
