Science, Health, Tech

The First State experienced three confirmed tornadoes last week, prompting some to wonder if Delaware should expect more to touch down in the future.

The Wilmington-based biopharmaceutical company Incyte is set to begin clinical trials for a drug that may be able to treat patients with severe cases of COVID-19.

The drug Jakafi, or more commonly Ruxolitinib, is used to treat blood cancers among other things and made Incyte almost $1.7 billion last year.

Delaware Public Media’s Nick Ciolino recently spoke with Incyte Vice President of Oncology Targeted Therapeutics Peter Langmuir, MD about how it may fit in with the list of different therapies being tested and used to treat the virus.

We return this week to Brandywine Creek for another update on a story we’ve been following all year.

In January, contributor Jon Hurdle reported on how a series of dams along the Brandywine dating back some 200 years were targeted for removal or modification - hoping to allow American shad to their ancestral spawning grounds again for the first time in two centuries. 

In May, Jon told us initial evidence showed the effort is paying off. Now he reports there’s even more good news this summer.

Delaware is assessing the damage up and down the state in the wake of Tropical Storm Isaias.

The recommendations are in from the Governor’s advisory group on what the state should do if cases here surge again.

As Delaware’s overdose rate continues to rise, the state continues its effort to hand out free Naloxone. 

Delaware is on pace to have another record year of overdoses as the coronavirus pandemic has brought on a surge of deadly drug use.

As public officials weigh how to conduct school this fall, children are being held up as low risk for getting seriously sick from COVID-19. 

But some kids have suffered from a rare, mysterious syndrome linked to the virus—even in Delaware.

During this week’s heat wave in Delaware, AAA Mid-Atlantic reminds people to make sure children or pets are not left in the car for any reason.

A new outlook from federal oceanographic scientists reaffirms projections that coastal towns in Delaware will see more sunny-day flooding in the future.

The chemical plant in New Castle where a toxic gas leak occurred nearly two years ago is applying for a state permit. Elected officials at the county level are already lining up against it.

The Delaware Division of Public Health released a new COVID-19 testing plan designed to ensure easy access to testing.

Health care systems around the country - including here in Delaware - have been coping with the coronavirus pandemic for months now.

And while the case level here in the First State has not taxed hospital capacity as it has elsewhere,  health care systems here are navigating a number of issues and challenges.

We recently sat down with Nemours CEO Dr. Larry Moss to discuss some of those issues and challenges,  and some of the opportunities found in the new normal created by the pandemic.

Renewable energy company Ørstead announced it’s not going to connect its offshore wind farm at Fenwick Island State Park. This means a loss of major park improvements as well.

The state is cracking down on restaurants and others violating new rules related to COVID-19.

At the Delaware’s weekly coronavirus update Tuesday, state Public Health Director Dr. Karyl Rattay outlined recent steps her division has taken to enforce coronavirus requirements in bars and restaurants.