The Lincoln Parks and Recreation Department has gradually begun the process of reopening playgrounds closed down during the coronavirus pandemic.
No specific timelines are available for when each of the 89 parks closed in April will reopen. Parks and Recreation Director Lynn Johnson said in a news release Tuesday that playground equipment must be inspected before fencing is removed and swings will be reinstalled.
Johnson said the decision follows recommendations by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
City officials also announced Tuesday afternoon that an 11th resident of Lincoln died of COVID-19.
The man was in his 60s and hospitalized, according to interim Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department Director Pat Lopez. It marked the first death in the county since June 5.
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Nine new cases of COVID-19 were announced in Lancaster County, bringing the total to 1,632. The number of hospitalizations had fallen from 26 Friday to 20 Tuesday. Of them, 12 were Lancaster County residents.
Meanwhile, Bryan Health said Tuesday that its number of patients with COVID-19 also continues to decline.
Bryan Medical Center CEO John Woodrich said there were only five coronavirus patients at Bryan Tuesday morning, four of whom are from Lancaster County.
That's the lowest number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients at Bryan since April 23, exactly two months ago.
Also, Woodrich reported that Bryan had only two COVID-19 patients on ventilators Tuesday, which is the lowest number since April 24.
Hospital admissions for COVID-19 patients have been steadily dropping in Lincoln and statewide over the past few weeks even though the number of new cases has remained relatively steady.
Douglas County also reported two new deaths -- its 81st and 82nd -- on Tuesday. Nebraska eclipsed 18,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, according to the Department of Health and Human Services, which reported 18,092 cases and 256 deaths from the disease on Tuesday afternoon.