County Executive Steve Bellone gave an update Sunday on the county's response to the COVID-19 outbreak in Suffolk.

-Bellone says the county is working to prepare to safely reopen beaches ahead of Memorial Day weekend.

- But he says it's most important that we honor US service members who have scarified for the country on Memorial Day. He says he's hopeful that the Dept. of Veterans Affairs will reverse its decision and allow volunteers to place flags at national cemeteries this Memorial Day weekend. He says it would be a "perverse" situation to invite people back to beaches but that we can't "safely go in and place flags at the graves of American heroes."

-Bellone says the county is prepared to have its Health Department certify that plans to allow grave flag placement are safe. "If we can reopen our beaches, surely we can put together a plan that will allow these volunteers to go in and honor these fallen heroes at our national cemeteries." He says he hopes to hear a response to his letter to the VA soon.

-The county is reporting another 15 deaths in the past 24 hours from COVID-19, for a total of 1,748.

MORE COVERAGE: LIVE BLOG - Coronavirus updates from the tri-state area and beyond 

 

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