COVID-19 case rates and hospitalizations in Michigan have been rapidly rising for weeks. The numbers are now nearing—and sometimes surpassing—those of the last two surges. A lot of Michiganders have been wondering how this happened in the state that was among the first to flatten the curve during the initial wave infections. There is an answer to that question. A reporting team published an extensive article Sunday in the Detroit Free Press that chronicles the spread of the B117 variant in the state. GUESTS: Tresa Baldas, Detroit Free Press reporter Derek Kravitz, investigative journalist with the Documenting COVID-19 project at the Brown Institute for Media Innovation. Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Stateside’s theme music is by 14KT. Additional music by Blue Dot Sessions.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.