Hidalgo County has recorded its largest number of deaths due to COVID-19 in a single day with 31 people from the area succumbing to illness, officials confirmed Tuesday.
Among those who died is a woman in her 20s from Pharr.
“I am deeply saddened today knowing that we continue to lose more and more of our neighbors to this terrible virus,” county judge Richard F. Cortez said in a news release. “The continued rise in fatalities and total positive cases is a grim reminder that this disease does not discriminate, and that we must all do our part if we are to overcome it.”
The total number of Hidalgo County residents who have succumbed to the coronavirus is now 183, according to the release.
The county also confirmed 396 new cases of the disease on Tuesday, raising the total number of cases seen there to 8,593, of which 5,031 cases remain active.
Three of the new cases confirmed include Weslaco Mayor David Suarez, and District 2 and 5 Commissioners Greg Kerr and Letty Lopez, respectively, according to a city news release.
“Right now, I am at home in quarantine to protect my family and my community,” Suarez said in the release. “As soon as I began to develop symptoms, I contacted my doctor and was tested for COVID-19. Even though I have a fever, chills, and a headache, I am otherwise doing okay, but will continue to monitor my symptoms and remain in quarantine for at least 14 days and show no symptoms of COVID-19.”
Additionally, there are currently 834 individuals being hospitalized due to the disease in local hospitals, of which 210 are being cared for in intensive care units.
So far, the county has administered 64,727 COVID-19 tests, with 1,087 results still pending.
A juvenile and youth development coach at the Evins Regional Juvenile Center in Edinburg were also confirmed on Tuesday to have contracted the coronavirus, according to a news release from the Texas Juvenile Justice Department.
According to the agency, 49 individuals of the Edinburg juvenile center have caught COVID-19 so far.
Cameron County also confirmed 415 additional cases of the coronavirus on Tuesday, according to a county news release.
This is the largest single-day total in Cameron County, surpassing the 358 reported Saturday as the previous high.
The total number of cases seen there is now 4,950, of which 1,963 remain active.
Of the new cases, 249 reside in Brownsville, making up for 60% of the county’s daily case count.
The county’s death toll remains at 79.
