Five more people in Dallas County are confirmed Friday to have died after being infected with COVID-19, according to the county health department who also announced fewer than 200 new cases of the virus Friday, the lowest number of new cases in nearly two weeks.
The latest victims to have died after contracting the virus bring the county's total number of fatalities to 164 and include the following:
- A woman in her 60’s who was a resident of Mesquite and had been critically ill in an area hospital.
- A woman in her 60’s who was a resident of Grand Prairie and had been critically ill in an area hospital.
- A man in his 60’s who was a resident of Grand Prairie and had been found deceased at home.
- A woman in her 70’s who was a resident of a long-term care facility in Mesquite and had been critically ill in an area hospital.
- A man in his 80’s who was a resident of a long-term care facility in Irving and had been hospitalized.
Meanwhile, the 199 cases confirmed by the health department are the lowest number of new cases reported by the county since May 2. Still, the county's total number of infections climbed to 7,036 Friday.
Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said county leaders would be anxiously watching to see if Friday's 20% drop is the beginning of a decline from the plateau of about 250 new cases per day, but that it's too early to call it a trend.
Jenkins, on Twitter, again mentioned a recent model by UT Southwestern he first shared on Thursday that indicated with the current restrictions on social and physical distancing Dallas County may see a rise of up to 800 new COVID-19 cases per day in July if efforts to curb the spread of the virus are relaxed.
"Remember that the effect of more people moving around after the governor’s reopen Texas announcement on April 27 has not begun to be felt yet and we don’t know what that impact will be," Jenkins said. "It’s important that all of us continue to make smart, personal responsibility decisions: avoiding crowds, maintaining social distancing, wearing face coverings on public transportation and at businesses while practicing good hygiene."
DCHHS said of cases requiring hospitalization who reported employment, over 80% have been critical infrastructure workers, with a broad range of affected occupational sectors, including healthcare, transportation, food and agriculture, public works, finance, communications, clergy, first responders and other essential functions.
Of cases requiring hospitalization, two-thirds have been under 65 years of age, and about half do not have high-risk chronic health conditions. Diabetes has been an underlying high-risk health condition reported in about a third of all hospitalized patients with COVID-19.
Of the 164 total deaths reported to date, over a third have been associated with long-term care facilities.
