In Chelsea, the hardest hit community in the state, the long tail of the coronavirus still lingers...Nearly 3,000 residents have tested positive for the virus, a strikingly high number in a city of just 40,000. And even as the number of cases now declines, the economic fallout remains staggering, with people fearful that the virus might return at any moment.
Those who run food pantries and rental relief programs said economic need in the city remains extreme.
“The only difference is that two months ago there was a sense of panic,” said Father Edgar Gutiérrez-Duarte, who runs a food pantry out of the Episcopal Church of San Lucas in Chelsea, distributing about 2,000 boxes of food every Saturday. “Financially, the situation has not changed, or probably has worsened.”