ROUNDUP: Protect yourself from scams, and four other DFW-area stories

County officials have identified the number of COVID-19 cases in each ZIP code. (Katherine Borey/Community Impact Newspaper)

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By Community Impact staff | 7:00 AM Apr 18, 2020 CDT

In case you missed them the first time around, here are five coronavirus-related updates from the metroplex.

'I’m Caller No. 2,145 today': Business owners grapple with arduous federal loan process

Many business owners are in a state of limbo as they await word from the U.S. Small Business Administration on the status of their disaster relief loans.

Community launches Richardson Strong initiative to promote solidarity, benefit Network of Community Ministries

Blue signs sporting the words "Richardson Strong" have begun to show up outside of homes and businesses across the city.

The grassroots initiative started as a way to honor health care workers at Methodist Richardson Medical Center but quickly morphed into something bigger, MRMC President Ken Hutchenrider said.

IN THE KNOW: Protect yourself from common scams related to the coronavirus

Many government entities are sounding the alarm on scams targeting consumers in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

LATEST: Dallas County announces mandatory mask policy for essential business workers, public transpo

Starting April 18, all visitors to essential businesses, essential business employees and public transportation users are required to wear a cloth mask.

Tarrant County tracking COVID-19 cases by ZIP code, other metrics

Starting in April, Tarrant County Public Health officials have begun providing more detailed information on the spread of the COVID-19 virus in the county.

Ian Pribanic and Olivia Lueckemeyer contributed to this report.

By Community Impact staff

MOST RECENT

Harvest Hall officially opened Feb. 6 in Grapevine as part of the Grapevine Main development. (Sandra Sadek/Community Impact Newspaper)

Harvest Hall now open in Grapevine, new dining options in Fort Worth and more DFW news from February

Here are some of the top stories from the past month from the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex.

Collin County Judge Chris Hill rescinds COVID-19 disaster declaration

Collin County’s declaration of local disaster in response to COVID-19 was rescinded Feb. 26 by Judge Chris Hill.

At its peak of power loss, the city had roughly 50,000 homes with interrupted power, many of which had prolonged outages, Plano City Manager Mark Israelson said. (Liesbeth Powers/Community Impact Newspaper)

Plano faces long-term impacts from storm; Collin County vaccine hubs resume service and more DFW-area news

Read the top business and community news from this week from the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

Snow covers I-45 in Houston during a winter storm that hit Texas the night of Feb. 14. (Shawn Arrajj/Community Impact Newspaper)

Legislators probe energy officials over power failures, lack of preparation heading into winter storm

The Texas Legislature held hearings Feb. 25 with energy companies including Oncor Electric Delivery and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas in response to last week’s historic winter storm, which left millions of Texans without electricity for days.

Justice permanently closed its Frisco location inside Stonebriar Centre in December. (File photo)

Justice clothing store permanently closes Stonebriar Centre location

Justice, a clothing and accessories store that offered merchandise for young girls and tweens, permanently closed its location at 2601 Preston Road, Ste. 1240, Frisco, in December.

IHOP is expected to open early this summer at the intersection of FM 423 and US 380. (Courtesy IHOP)

IHOP coming to northwest Frisco this summer

IHOP will open a new location early this summer at 1375 US 380, Frisco.

The North Texas Municipal Water District has lifted its request for its member cities to reduce water use. (Courtesy Fotolia)

Collin County water supplier lifts water conservation request

With water demands returning to normal levels, the North Texas Municipal Water District has lifted its request to reduce nonessential water use within its service area, which includes the cities of Frisco, McKinney, Plano and Richardson.

The coffee and wine bar offers signature drinks, such as the Honey Bear Latte, made with honey and cinnamon, as well as food options, such as breakfast tacos, charcuterie boards, baked goods and snack boxes. (Courtesy Golden Boy Coffee Co.)

Golden Boy Coffee Co. opens in Plano; Black Rock Coffee Bar coming to Southlake and more DFW-area news

Read the latest business and community news from the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

Fry's Electronics calls it quits after nearly 36 years in business

As many as 31 stores across nine states will be shuttered as Fry's Electronics shuts down due to market changes and the pandemic.

A lone runner jogs on a snow-covered road in Austin. Transportation projects across the city were briefly paused due to Winter Storm Uri. (Jack Flagler/Community Impact Newspaper)

ERCOT: Texas power system was less than 5 minutes from collapse during winter storm

ERCOT's CEO offered details into what led to the massive blackouts that left millions of Texans in the cold last week.

House Sprucing Design & Decor will open in west Frisco in mid-March. (Courtesy House Sprucing Design & Decor)

House Sprucing Design & Decor coming to Frisco

House Sprucing Design & Decor, a North Texas-based interior design company, is set to open in Frisco.

uBreakiFix opened its 600th U.S. location on Preston Road in Frisco in November. (Courtesy Adobe Stock)

uBreakiFix new Frisco location now open

uBreakiFix opened its 600th U.S. location in Frisco at 3333 Preston Road, Ste. 106, in mid-November.