We looked at the city's number of measles cases last week on episode 21, and new numbers this week show that the outbreak continues to grow. Within the city, there have now been 498 total confirmed cases, and increase of 32 over last week, and in data from the CDC, the nationwide total is now at 839. A new school has been ordered closed this week for failure to follow the city health commissioner's public health emergency plan introduced last month. On May 13th, the city ordered the Yeshiva of Central Queens closed for failing to "exclude unvaccinated students for 21 days following a known exposure at the school." This is the 9th school closed by the city, and all others have since been allowed to reopen after modifying their practices to comply with the emergency plan. This outbreak is the worst the United States has seen since 1994, when the yearly total was 928 cases nationwide. In response to the ongoing outbreak of measles, the city has partnered with local (hut 'zu lah) Hatzolah emergency medical groups and the Maimonides Medical Center to make the measles vaccine available to the community, regardless of medical insurance or ability to pay. Various times and locations are available on a poster provided by the city that you can view online, or you can call 311 for more information or stop by the Hatzolah offices Boro Park, Williamsburg, or Flatbush. Within the city, Orthodox Jewish communities are hardest hit due to a combination of unvaccinated individuals and travelers returning from Israel, where there has been an outbreak of measles since last year. In the city health department data, Williamsburg has the highest total number of cases, at 379, and has added 20 new cases just in the previous week. The city has also carried through with restrictions outlined in an official health department declaration from last month, closing multiple schools and citing 98 individuals for failing to show proof of vaccination or to obtain a new vaccination. Measles is a highly contagious disease that is spread through the air as sick individuals cough or sneeze. The measles vaccination is included in MMR shots, standing for measles, mumps, and rubella, that contain a specially-weakened form of the virus that trains the body's immune system on how to defend against that virus in the future. For information on where to obtain a measles vaccination, call 311 or view information from the Department of Health at nyc.gov/doh. 100 years ago on May 16, 1919 — Members of the "Russellites" religious sect living in Brooklyn receive reduced sentences after being charged with distributing anti-war materials. 135 years ago on May 17, 1884 — P.T. Barnum leads a parade of 21 elephants across the Brooklyn Bridge, which had opened just one year earlier Wegmans supermarket comes to the Brooklyn Navy Yard on 7am on October 27th, when the 74,000 sqft store opens where Admiral's Row once stood. An update to last week's deadly Harlem fire at the Frederick E. Samuel Apartments that claimed the lives of four children and two adults in the early-morning hours of May 8th. FDNY fire investigators determined the cause to have been an open flame on the stove, and that Andrea Pollidore had a habit of disabling the smoke detector while she cooked because it would begin to alarm so easily. A source told NBC4 that the stove was found in the "on" position, so it seems to have been left burning at some point that day and eventually fire spread late in the night, when smoke overtook the apartment before the family inside could escape. Killed in the fire were 4 y/o Elijah, 6 y/o Brooklyn, 8 y/o Andre, 11 y/o Nakyra, their mother Andrea Pollidore, and family friend 32 y/o Mac Abdularauph, who was previously reported as a step-son. A GoFundMe page has been set up by a family member to cover the funeral costs and has received over $40,000 in just six days.