WASHINGTON, D.C., USA — Volunteers in Washington, D.C. were hard at work placing more than 600,000 white flags on the National Mall to honor the Americans who died from the coronavirus.
With the Delta variant causing more infections and spreading faster than earlier forms of the virus, the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths continue in an upward trend. The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention reported 666,444 Americans died due to COVID-19, as of Wednesday, Sept. 15. Illinois reported a total of 24,492 deaths, as of Thursday, Sept. 16. Iowa reported 6,448 deaths, as of Wednesday.
The exhibit, titled "In America: Remember," will be open to the public from Sept. 17 to Oct. 3. Visitors to the memorial are invited to personalize a flag for someone they lost from 10 a.m. to sunset on weekdays and 9 a.m. to sunset on weekends.
For those unable to visit in person, a form on the exhibit's website allows you to dedicate flag to a loved one, and a volunteer in D.C. will handwrite the message on a flag to be physically planted on the National Mall.