US Domestic News Roundup: Kennedy granddaughter, great-grandson missing in Chesapeake Bay; Trump invokes Defense Production Act to stop export of masks and more

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Kennedy granddaughter, great-grandson missing in Chesapeake Bay

The granddaughter of the late Robert F. Kennedy and her young son were missing on Friday after drifting out into the Chesapeake Bay on a canoe, Maryland Governor Larry Hogan said. An intensive search continued for Maeve Fahey Townsend, and her son Gideon, Hogan said.

U.S. attorney general orders release of more federal inmates due to coronavirus pandemic

U.S. Attorney General William Barr declared on Friday that the federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is facing emergency conditions due to the fast-spreading coronavirus, paving the way for the agency to begin releasing more inmates out of custody and into home confinement. Barr said under his emergency order, priority for releasing vulnerable inmates into home confinement should be given first to those housed in federal prisons that have been hardest hit by COVID-19, including facilities such as Oakdale in Louisiana, Elkton in Ohio and Danbury in Connecticut.

Trump invokes Defense Production Act to stop export of masks

U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday signed an order directing his administration to stop N-95 face masks and other personal protective equipment needed in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic from being exported to other countries. In a statement, Trump said his order under the Defense Production Act "is another step in our ongoing fight to prevent hoarding, price gouging, and profiteering by preventing the harmful export of critically needed PPE."

How the coronavirus job cuts played out by sector and demographics

The job losses suffered in March as the U.S. economy shut down in the face of the novel coronavirus pandemic were widespread but still were disproportionately felt in a handful of employment sectors and by women, the young and the less educated. In all, 701,000 jobs were reported lost last month, the Labor Department said on Friday, but even that massive number - the largest since the financial crisis 11 years ago - did not capture the true depth of the losses because the monthly survey was conducted too early in March.

'Crazy amounts of chicken' and masks - a small Washington grocer's typical day

A tall, surgical mask-wearing young man stands at the entrance as customers line up outside. A sign at the door - illustrated with stick figures drawn by the co-owner's 6-year-old daughter - warns clients they can only come in three at a time. The notice behind the cash register is starker: "Treat your visit as if it's risking lives."

Explainer: Why U.S. hospitals see promise in plasma from new coronavirus patients

U.S. hospitals desperate to help very sick patients with COVID-19, the highly contagious respiratory disease caused by the new coronavirus, are trying a treatment first used in the 1890s that relies on blood plasma donated by recovered patients. People who survive an infectious disease like COVID-19 are generally left with blood containing antibodies, or proteins made by the body's immune system to fight off a virus.

The blood component that carries the antibodies can be collected and given to newly infected patients - it is known as "convalescent plasma."

New York in 'race against time' as Trump stresses face masks are voluntary

Two of the principal U.S. coronavirus hot spots - New York and Louisiana - reported their biggest jumps in COVID-19 deaths yet on Friday, as the White House sent mixed messages on whether Americans should cover their face if they venture outdoors. Surging deaths in New York City and New Orleans showed that a wave of lethal coronavirus infections expected to overwhelm hospitals, even in relatively affluent, urban areas with extensive healthcare systems, has begun to crash down on the United States.

Exclusive: Navy probe to decide future of fired U.S. carrier commander Even as he is hailed as a hero by his crew, the fired commander of a coronavirus-stricken U.S. aircraft carrier is being reassigned while investigators consider whether he should face disciplinary action, acting U.S. Navy Secretary Thomas Modly told Reuters on Friday. Captain Brett Crozier was relieved of his command of the Theodore Roosevelt on Thursday after a scathing letter in which he called on the Navy for stronger action to halt the spread of the virus aboard the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier was leaked to the media.

Over 120,000 sign online petition to reinstate U.S. Navy carrier commander More than 120,000 people have signed a petition calling on the U.S. Navy to reinstate the captain of a coronavirus-stricken aircraft carrier a day after he was relieved of his command for a letter sent to superiors urging stronger measures to halt the outbreak. Captain Brett Crozier was relieved of his command of the USS Theodore Roosevelt on Thursday after a scathing letter in which he called on the Navy to take "decisive action" to halt the spread of the virus aboard the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier was leaked to the media.

Texas 'fully prepared' for coronavirus, does not see New York situation: governor Texas is fully prepared to meet hospital needs during the coronavirus pandemic and does not expect the kind of capacity problems facing New York, Governor Greg Abbott said on Friday. Texas has nearly 20,000 hospital beds available after a 142% increase in capacity to treat the virus, and at least 8,741 ventilators, Abbott told a news conference.