Health officials in Dallas County reported 866 new COVID-19 cases Wednesday along with two deaths.
The deaths include a man in his 30's who was a resident of the City of Garland. He was found deceased at a hotel and had underlying health conditions. The second death was a man in his 70's who was the resident of a long-term care facility in the City of Dallas. He had been critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying health conditions, according to Dallas County Health and Human Services.
Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said the number of known school-aged children with COVID-19 doubled over the last three weeks to 693 cases and he cautioned that if people don't take steps to curb the spread of the virus, medical models indicate the county will once again see new cases numbers over 1,000 per day by Thanksgiving.
According to data from the state health department, hospitalizations in Texas Tuesday are nearly 6,000.
Of the 866 cases reported, 687 were confirmed and 179 were probable, according to DCHSS. Officials said 391 of the cases came from the Texas Department of State Health Services electronic laboratory reporting system, which are from October and November.
The county has now accumulated 99,160 confirmed cases of the virus since testing began in March. The county said there have been 1,121 confirmed deaths attributed in the county to the virus, which, according to Dallas County Health and Human Services Director Dr. Philip Huang, is now the third leading cause of death in the county behind diseases of the heart and cancers.
COVID-19 TRACKING AND TESTING
"We know what we need to do to curve the spread of this virus, we just need to summon the community resolve to do it. Increasingly we are seeing cases come from home gatherings and it’s very important to wear a mask and engage in social distancing. Avoid gatherings of people outside your home and find other ways to stay close. Together we can flatten the curve, decrease the number of COVID-19 cases, strengthen our economy, and protect our residents, schools, and businesses,” Jenkins said in a statement.
