On average, more than 2,200 Americans per day are dying from the coronavirus, reaching April’s high levels. More than 200,000 test positive for the virus daily, and cases are rising in all states. Much of Southern California has imposed stringent new lockdowns this week as COVID-19 patients fill ICU beds.

Young people who were brought to the United States illegally as children can again apply for deportation relief. Following a court order, the Department of Homeland Security on Monday said it would accept new applications to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

British Health Secretary Matt Hancock dubbed Tuesday “V-Day” in the fight against the pandemic, harkening back to the final days of World War II. This time, the V stands for “vaccine,” instead of “victory.” The country authorized widespread use of Pfizer and BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine and 90-year-old Margaret Keenan received the first dose today. The vaccine will go to nursing home workers and older people first—most will have to wait until after the new year to get the shot.

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra in 2017 filed 15 felony charges against pro-life activists for their undercover investigation of Planned Parenthood. On Monday, President-elect Joe Biden picked him to lead the Health and Human Services Department (HHS).

Blazes injured two firefighters and burned several homes. The biggest wildfire began late Wednesday in Orange County’s Silverado Canyon and caused officials to order 25,000 people to evacuate, though some of those orders were later lifted. As a precaution, Southern California Edison had cut power to nearly 100,000 homes and businesses to avoid sparking new fires.

The president-elect has previously pushed for a nationwide mask mandate to stop the spread of the coronavirus. But on Thursday, Joe Biden stopped short of that, saying his first act as president would be asking Americans to commit to wear face coverings for his first 100 days in office.

Only time will tell if the structure in Southern California will disappear like its two predecessors. A tall, three-sided steely column has appeared at the top of a hill in Atascadero, Calif., KEYT-TV reported Wednesday. It’s the third of such structures—the first was found in Utah two weeks ago, and the second in Romania last week. Both have since vanished.