Churches coast to coast planning inperson Easter SundayServices Despite stayathome orders, pitting pastors and parishioners against police. How you can worship safely. Were hearing from Bishop Michael curry and hillsongs pastor carl lentz on this good friday. Holiday weekend severe weather. The tornado threat for Easter Sunday. Where the storms are headed and how bad they could be. Were tracking the latest. Abc news exclusive. The emotional interview with one woman who triumphed over coronavirus. The new york mother with no underlying medical conditions tells us how she beat covid19 after getting that standing ovation from doctors and nurses when she finally left the hospital. Knowing that they cared that much to be there to, you know, to say that goodbye was wonderful. Why her story is a cautionary tale for so many. Her powerful message this morning. cause im gonna stand by you and paying it forward. The Small Business saved by our deals steals now giving back with an unbelievable donation to a hospital on the front lines. All thank you. And nba superstar steph curry pulling off the surprise of a lifetime for a Health Care Hero on the front lines. How she looks to the warrior for inspiration. Good morning, america. Its good to be with you on this good friday morning. Its great to have george joining us from home as we get ready for a holiday weekend. Thats right. We have passover celebrations under way right now, and Easter Sunday, of course, coming up. There is a lot to be thankful for, and as we see cities coast to coast glowing with that gratitude right there. You see new york, and there is dallas lit up in blue, and los angeles doing the very same. Beautiful. Kansas city also lit up in blue for the evening and Niagara Falls there, indianapolis aslo doing it. So many others taking part in the light it Blue Campaign all to honor the essential workers out there, a beautiful tribute for all of our heroes in the fight against covid19. George. They are on the front lines every hour of every day right now. We are so grateful for them and here are the latest numbers on the emergency here in the United States right now. More than 460,000 cases of covid19. 16,000 deaths. 26,000 americans have recovered. And in new york state alone there are more than 160,000 cases. Coming up, i am going to be talking to Governor Andrew Cuomo in our next hour. Michael. And george, were going to begin our coverage this morning in new york with whit johnson who starts us off at mount sinai hospital. Good morning, whit. Reporter michael, good morning to you. In new york state, the number of people being admitted into the icus is the lowest its been in three weeks, but the governor says that high death rate lags behind as some patients who have been hospitalized for an extended period of time continue to lose their battle with the virus. This morning, a painful pattern as the death toll in new york state continues to eclipse the day before. Coronavirus killing nearly 800 people in just 24 hours. The governor urging new yorkers to stay the course, despite a lower rate of hospitalizations. Were in a battle, right, but this is about a war. We have to stay prepared for what could come down the road. Reporter in that battle to save lives, doctors are deploying a rare treatment for covid patients. Inside this icu at maimonides hospital in brooklyn. Making considerably more progress. Reporter heart surgeon dr. Paul saunders, a Covid Survivor himself, now back on the job using a therapy called echmo temporarily drawing blood out of the body to help oxygenate red blood cells in patients whose lungs arent functioning. In the current epidemic it is used as a last resort when ventilators arent enough. Reporter some patients in their 30s and 40s. We definitely are seeing people who are young with no medical problems coming in and getting very, very sick and its very hard to predict who is going to get very sick and who is not. Reporter overwhelmed hospitals moving patients to bigger facilities, stacking them on bunks in large trucks to be transported. Despite growing calls for an expanded nationwide testing system, President Trump insisting its not necessary before reopening the country. Were talking about 325 Million People and thats not going to happen, as you can imagine, and it would never happen with anyone else either. Reporter the pandemic sweeping across america. In texas, the number of cases topping 10,000. About 200 deaths as concerns grow of a possible new hot spot. In richmond, virginia, 39 residents dying in just one nursing home. It appears its a death trap. It appears that way. In the sense that we cant see them, we cant go and take them out. Reporter and in chicago overnight, a second death among Cook County Jail inmates. Hundreds of inmates and officers within cook county now testing positive. And theres the economic toll. Mounting frustration and uncertainty for millions of americans filing for unemployment waiting for their stimulus checks as nearly 17 million are now out of work. We cant get the answers that we need, so its getting really scary when may all the bills come due in may, i dont know what were going to do. Reporter now some businesses doing their part through the crisis. The four seasons Flagship Hotel in new york city opening its doors to house medical workers. Emergency room doctor and mother dara cass, a Covid Survivor herself, says the stay is a relief to her and her family. Knowing that i have a safe and secure place to stay, and my family could come home as well was basically indescribable. Reporter and stories of recovery from all over the country. A cheerful sendoff for this elderly couple admitted to this hospital in west kendall, florida two weeks ago finally headed home. New data this week shows minority communities continue to be hit the hardest so Governor Cuomo announced five new testing sites to go into those neighborhoods across new york city to help collect information and create policies to fix the problem. Michael. Hopefully that will help, whit. Thank you so much. As we just saw the state of things in new york, george, you will talk to Governor Andrew Cuomo about it later in the show. Yeah, hes been leading that effort every single day. We move overseas where abc news is on the scene in wuhan as that chinas ground zero for the pandemic tries to get back to normal and in london where Prime MinisterBoris Johnson is out of intensive care this morning and in good spirits. James longman is in london with the latest. Good morning, james. Reporter good morning, george. He is out of the icu, still in the hospital but hopefully on the mend. A big relief for the united kingdom. In china, yes, wuhan has finally come out of its lockdown, 11 long weeks, but we are getting a glimpse of what the easing and lockdown could look like for us when our lockdowns are finally over. This morning, after 76 days of lockdown, the streets of wuhan are open again. Long lines forming at airports and train stations as thousands can at last leave the city. Ladies and gentlemen, our train will still arrive at Wuhan Railway station. Reporter this time lapse showing how quickly morning traffic returned, unimaginable just a few months ago. But the infamous Seafood Market where the infection broke out still a no go zone. The city of 11 million was the original epicenter of the covid19 crisis, the first case detected late last year but now only three infections have been reported the past three weeks. As ever in china surveillance is still in place. Local police say these new helmets deployed to transit hubs can scan temperatures of more than 100 passengers in just two minutes. Its a bold claim and unclear how well they work. For those catching flights or trains, protective gear still keeps this invisible enemy at bay. This elaborate light show at the yangzee river was a celebration to Honor Health Care workers. The temperature checks beforehand a reminder of the danger they battled against. I didnt realize i would be in quarantine for 67 days. Reporter mark wetton after months in isolation has finally bought his ticket to return to the u. S. Wuhan is definitely opening up. People just really did a good job of obeying and doing what they needed to do. Reporter and a sign of how difficult it is to control this virus, wuhan might be opening up but another town in china is now going into lockdown. Its about 1,600 miles away from wuhan and theyve detected covid19 in chinese nationals returning to the town, george. And, james, we are seeing other hot spots crop up around the world. Reporter yeah, thats right. Different countries are taking kind of a different tact to this. Japan has seen a big spike in cases and they declared a state of national emergency. Spain now, though, is starting to see an end. The Prime Minister there saying they are now controlling the fire that is coronavirus, although they are extending their lockdown by a further two weeks, george. James longman, thanks very much. Amy. All right, george. Now to new testing set to begin in los angeles. Randomly selected residents will get an Antibody Test to determine if they already had coronavirus and are now immune. Kaylee hartung joins us now from los angeles with more on if this could help us get back to a normal way of life. Good morning, kaylee. Reporter good morning, amy. Today in los angeles, researchers are taking matters into their own hands in the fight against covid19. All it will take is a prick of your finger. The information gathered could be key to better understanding this disease and may be helpful in getting people back to work. Drivethrough testing sites have popped up across the country, but not like this. In california, a project under way to check thousands of people for antibodies to covid19. The test is as simple as a finger prick. Our test can give us a very clear sense of whats happening in the population. Reporter two bold doctors teaming up, one from stanford, one from usc, forging ahead with a volunteer army to test their communities for antibodies. I think we have to be as proactive as possible because every week we wait, there are millions of people who are losing their jobs. There are millions of people who are anxious about whats going on. And we are making a lot of policy decisions without really understanding this disease. Reporter testing began last weekend in Northern California where more than 3,000 people had their blood sample taken. Now doctor neeraj sood and his team will begin testing in los angeles today. He spoke with diane sawyer. Six sites in Los Angeles County, 1,200 people about to be tested. What are you feeling right now . I am excited, as well as a little bit nervous. I want to make sure we are able to do this successfully. Reporter this tester from the team at stanford. One of the tools you can use is this test which can tell, you know, have you been exposed in the past as opposed to some of the tests that we were doing originally which was focused on do you have it right now . Reporter Antibody Testing is just one component in the formula that could help us get back on a path to normalcy. These california doctors tell diane they hope that the information they gather can help alleviate some of that anxiety and uncertainty that were all feeling and they want to make a difference in how policy is made moving forward. Results from both of these testing sites are coming soon and, michael, we look forward to being able to share those with you. A lot of anxious people waiting for those results. Thank you so much, kaylee. This Easter Sunday some churches will open their doors to worshippers defying stayathome orders and pitting pastors and parishioners against police. Abcs t. J. Holmes is ka trcathedral in services will be streamed online instead. Good morning, t. J. Reporter good morning to you. That is time, people are turning to faith for hope. They want a message of hope and places like st. Patricks church across the country will be empty on easter. It seems unimaginable but necessary at this time but despite a pandemic, some pastors still plan to pack the pews this sunday. Determined and defiant, some churches across the country from georgia to louisiana vowing to hold inperson easter Services Despite stayathome orders. Theyre trying to take down our great nation by shutting the doors to the church, but we will not let them. Nothing is going to detour that Easter Sunday service from occurring. Reporter pastor tony spell of louisianas Life Tabernacle church says the right to assemble is god given and even though hes faced charges for defying the governors orders for people to stay home and not assemble in large groups, hes Still Holding massive gatherings. More than 1,200 showed up to his Palm Sunday Service last weekend. Im hungry spiritually. Im not scared of this virus and if its my time its my time. Life goes on. Reporter now Easter Sunday could be a showdown between pastors and police. Tony spell needs to abide by the law. A week ago we charged him with six counts of violation of the governors emergency order sixfoot rule. Reporter the battle in kansas might be headed to court. Democratic Governor Laura Kelly announced shes suing republican lawmakers who are trying to override her order prohibiting gatherings of mother than ten people effectively limiting Easter Sunday services. We do not have time to play political games during a pandemic. Reporter this as top religious leaders around the globe find ways to practice their faith and keep the faithful safe. Pope francis streaming holy thursday mass in a nearly empty st. Peters basilica. Jewish worshippers holding passover seders on zoom. Reporter hillsong pastor carl lentz who battled coronavirus himself, plans to livestream his Easter Service for his hundreds of thousands of followers. We dont feel like this guideline from our government is restricting our ability to worship at all. Church is way more than a building anyway. Reporter reverend michael curry, the presiding bishop of the episcopal church, says you can still worship god and Love Thy Neighbor by keeping thy distance. Do you think that it makes any sense for anybody to be having Church Service on sunday . This is one time when i believe that, frankly, we are doing gods will by not going to church. Right now, not being in public gatherings, if you will, is one way we can show love for our neighbor. Reporter police arent expected to necessarily bust up that Church Service on sunday in louisiana, rather just collect evidence for possibly prosecution later and, stra and robach, reverend curry does have a message for everyone about this idea of churches not being on the list of essential businesses in many places. Hes saying, absolutely church is an essential business. Its just not essential that you physically be in it during a pandemic. Yeah, i love what he said. Thats how you Love Thy Neighbor by not spreading the virus even if you dont know you have it, you could. T. J. , thank you so much. From reverend curry to steph curry, how about that . You like that transition . We have a wonderful moment from nba superstar steph curry pulling off an epic facetime surprise for shelby delaney, a nurse in the intensive care unit at the Summit Medical center in oakland who is a big fan of the warriors. Take a look at what happened. I cant thank god enough for what youre doing and just the sacrifice, the selflessness, the way that everybodys coming together. Thank you so much for what you do, your heart, the inspiration yall provide for everybody. Ah, what a facetime. Shelby wore stephs jersey underneath her protective gear. You can see it there at the hospital, for inspiration and she said she did it to bring out her inner warrior, and they are all warriors. They are all right there on the front lines. Helping all of us. Without a doubt. Cannot thank them enough. Coming up, an abc news exclusive. The emotional interview with the woman who beat covid19 and finally reuniting with her family. Her story and the cautionary tale for so many. Wow. Also this morning, essential advice on how to get your groceries safely during this pandemic, and new york Governor Andrew Cuomo is joining us live for the latest on the Coronavirus Crisis right here in new york. First, ginger is at home with more on that tornado threat this easter weekend for so many. Ginger. Such history as far as easter and tornadoes go. So we will get to that threat but lets start with the damaging winds that were screaming from massachusetts back to porter, texas. Take a listen. Oh. Yeah, that would be a huge tree falling. That was not the only place. Power lines were taken down in new jersey, trees into homes in other parts of new jersey. Just have to take in those pictures to realize that could happen again this weekend. The first threat happens in texas, tomorrow. Especially near on the mexican border. Louisiana, mississippi, alabama, Easter Sunday tornadoes possible. Lets get to the weekend forecast now brought to you by the u. S. 2020 census. Good friday morning. Im abc 7 news meteorologist mike nicco. Look for more sunshine as a drier pattern w