10 things you need to know today: April 13, 2020

1. Violent storms crash across the South

Severe storms killed at least eight people, seven of them in Mississippi, as violent weather swept across much of the South, bringing high winds, hail, and tornadoes to a region of more than 50 million people. Storms with wind gusts reaching 70 miles per hour hit parts of Gulf Coast states. There were at least 39 reports of tornadoes in Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, and other states. Hundreds of homes were damaged or destroyed. Weather forecasters begged people to take cover, but in many areas public shelters were not open due to coronavirus social distancing orders. Power companies reported outages that affected tens of thousands of customers. Another flurry of violent storms was forecast for the region on Monday.

USA Today The Weather Channel

2. Fauci says earlier coronavirus lockdown would have saved lives

Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Sunday there was "a lot of pushback" in February to enacting federal coronavirus social distancing guidelines, and, "You could logically say that if you had a process that was ongoing and you started mitigation earlier, you could have saved lives." "Obviously, no one is going to deny that," Fauci, the White House's top coronavirus doctor, told CNN's Jake Tapper. The White House issued social distancing guidelines on March 16 after six weeks of warnings from experts. There are more than 557,000 confirmed cases and at least 22,109 deaths from the COVID-19 coronavirus in the United States. "If we had right from the very beginning shut everything down, it might have been a little bit different," Fauci said.

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CNN The New York Times

3. Saudi Arabia, Russia, U.S. lead pact to cut oil output

Saudi Arabia, Russia, and other leading oil exporting nations, prodded by President Trump, agreed on Sunday to the largest production cuts ever negotiated in a bid to stop crude-oil prices from plunging further as the coronavirus crisis reduces the demand for fuel. The agreement, which calls for slashing output by 9.7 million barrels per day in May and June, came after Trump intervened to help resolve a standoff between Saudi Arabia and Mexico that threatened to derail a broader agreement. Trump tweeted thanks to Russian and Saudi Arabian leaders and said the pact would "save hundreds of thousands of energy jobs in the United States." It was not immediately clear whether the cuts, amounting to nearly 10 percent of world output, would be enough to offset plunging demand.

The New York Times The Wall Street Journal

4. All 50 states under disaster declaration for first time in U.S. history

President Trump on Saturday approved a disaster declaration for Wyoming as a result of the novel COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. The decision means that, for the first time in U.S. history, all 50 states are under a federal disaster declaration. Additionally, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam have also had disaster declarations approved. Overall, there have been more than 500,000 confirmed cases of the new coronavirus across the country, the most anywhere in the world. A majority of states have issued stay-at-home or shelter-in-place orders to slow the virus' spread, which do appear to be having an effect.

BBC News

5. Some churches hold in-person Easter services despite large gathering bans

Some pastors defied anti-coronavirus isolation policies and held in-person Easter services on Sunday, while most churches arranged to celebrate virtually. Pastor Tony Spell held two Easter services at Life Tabernacle Church in Baton Rouge, sidestepping Gov. John Bel Edwards' (D) order barring gatherings of more than 50 people. Central Police Department Chief Roger Corcoran said he counted 330 people entering the church for the morning service. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) called churches essential, and said they could hold services as long as worshipers stayed six feet apart. Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) said anyone attending a service or other large gathering should self quarantine for two weeks. Police took license numbers and placed notices on windshields telling people to self quarantine or face "further enforcement measures."

The Washington Post USA Today

6. Gantz, Netanyahu face deadline to avoid 4th election

Israeli President Reuven Rivlin on Sunday rejected Blue and White party leader Benny Gantz's request for a two-week extension to form a coalition government, giving Gantz and his rival, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a midnight deadline to strike a deal to share power. If they can't reach an agreement, the country could head toward its fourth parliamentary election in just over a year. Rivlin last month gave Gantz, a former army leader who now heads a centrist alliance, the chance to form a government after a narrow majority of lawmakers backed him to be the next prime minister. Gantz later said he would be willing to cooperate with Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party to form an emergency government to address the coronavirus crisis. But negotiations stalled as parts of Gantz's alliance balked at working with Netanyahu, who is facing a trial on corruption charges.

Politico

7. Erdogan blocks resignation of minister over rushed coronavirus curfew

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday rejected the resignation of his interior minister, who offered to step down over a short-notice coronavirus lockdown that sparked a rush on stores as people tried to stock up on basic necessities. The declaration of the 48-hour curfew in dozens of cities Friday night gave millions of people just two hours to buy supplies. "The incidents that occurred ahead of the implementation of the curfew were not befitting the perfect management of the outbreak," Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu tweeted as he announced his resignation. Soylu made his statement just before the weekend lockdown ended. Erdogan said it wasn't "appropriate" for the minister to quit.

Reuters

8. Judge blocks Alabama's attempt to ban abortions under coronavirus restrictions

A federal judge ruled Sunday that Alabama can't ban abortions under its effort to fight the spread of COVID-19. Alabama issued an order in late March to postpone all elective medical procedures, except in emergencies, as hospitals braced for a surge in patients infected with the coronavirus. "For some group of women, a mandatory postponement will make a lawful abortion literally impossible," wrote U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson, who previously blocked the state's near-total abortion ban. Alabama is one of several Republican-led states, including Ohio and Texas, that have tried to block abortions during the crisis on the grounds that they are unnecessary medical procedures.

The Washington Post

9. Smithfield shuts plant after coronavirus outbreak among workers

Smithfield Foods announced Sunday that it would shut a U.S. pork plant indefinitely because of a coronavirus outbreak among workers. South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem said just before the Sioux Falls plant's shutdown announcement that 238 Smithfield employees had confirmed infections, making up more than half of the state's cases. The plant has 3,700 workers and accounts for 4 to 5 percent of U.S. pork production. Smithfield, the world's biggest pork processor, warned that the United States was getting "perilously close to the edge" in the struggle to maintain supplying grocery stores as slaughterhouse closures disrupted meat deliveries. "It is impossible to keep our grocery stores stocked if our plants are not running," Smithfield Chief Executive Ken Sullivan said in a statement on Sunday.

Reuters

10. Disney World to furlough 43,000 employees

Walt Disney World in Florida plans to furlough 43,000 workers due to coronavirus stay-at-home orders that have decimated the travel industry, The New York Times reported Sunday, citing the company and a union coalition representing the workers. Disney closed its theme parks worldwide in mid-March. The workers, who make between $13 and $20 an hour, will be furloughed starting April 19 under an agreement between the company and the Services Trades Council Union, a group of six unions that represent the Disney World theme park resort workers. "This is a decision that the union doesn't like," Eric Clinton, president of Unite Here Local 362, said over the weekend via Facebook Live. "However, it's within the company's right to lay off and furlough employees in this situation."

The New York Times