EDINBURG — Hidalgo County confirmed its first cases of a COVID-19 variant Wednesday, on the first anniversary of the county declaring a state of emergency due to the coronavirus last year, and a week after Gov. Greg Abbott lifted the mask mandate in the state.
During a news conference Wednesday afternoon, Hidalgo County Health and Human Services Director Eddie Olivarez announced four confirmed cases of the B.1.1.7. variant, commonly known as the UK variant.
“As of this morning, we got official announcement from the Texas Department of State Health Services laboratory in Austin, Texas that we have four confirmed cases of the COVID-19 variant,” Olivarez said, adding that tests were conducted in February.
The first case of the UK variant was confirmed Tuesday. The county received confirmation on the other three cases Wednesday morning.
“This variant is more virulent,” Olivarez said. “It’s able to spread quicker between people and in some cases, may cause hospitalization.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website, there are 4,686 confirmed cases of the UK variant in the United States, with 235 of those in Texas.
Olivarez said the vaccines are effective against this variant, but more research is being conducted to determine whether an additional vaccine or a booster will be needed.
He added it’s possible the virus has already been in the Rio Grande Valley for some time due to the large population.
“When you look at it, statistically speaking, a county of our size, 1.3 million people, the variant is already here. It has been here for a while,” Olivarez said. “We just were not aware of it.”
Olivarez said Texas Health and Human Services is partnering with a local hospital by collecting random samples and sending them to be tested in Austin. He said this will help the county receive quicker confirmation on any variants in the area.
VICTIMS MEMORIAL
News of the county’s first cases of the variant came on the same day Hidalgo County Judge Richard F. Cortez announced the creation of a task force which will explore the creation of a COVID-19 victims memorial.
The announcement was made in a county video commemorating the first anniversary of the judge’s declaration of a local disaster due to COVID-19.
According to a news release, the task force will be made up of five members appointed by the members of the Hidalgo County Commissioners Court.
Their responsibilities will include recommending by July 1 “the design, location, cost and funding source for the memorial,” the release read. “The monument will not only encompass the memory of the nearly 3,000 lives lost to COVID-19, but will also honor the resilience of our health care workers, essential employees and the entire community who continues to endure this deadly disease.”
“It’s both an honor and privilege to work on this memorial project,” Cortez said in the release. “I extend my heart as we continue to mourn these lives while offering a place of remembrance for surviving victims.”
DAILY CASES
Earlier Wednesday, the county had reported seven COVID-19 related deaths and 659 new cases.
The deaths include a woman in her 50s from Edinburg, three deaths in Pharr — a woman in her 40s, another over the age of 70 and a man in his 60s — and three other deaths from undisclosed locations, including a woman and a man in their 40s and another man over 70. The deaths raise the county’s death toll to 2,718.
The 659 new cases include 568 that are confirmed, 87 that are probable and four that are suspected. The total number of cases reported in the county are 82,881, of which 55,113 were confirmed, 26,509 were probable and 1,259 were suspected.
There are 2,173 net active cases in the county.
There are 160 people in Hidalgo County hospitals, and 64 are in intensive care units.
The county reported an additional 642 people were released from isolation Wednesday, raising that total to 77,990.
As of Wednesday morning, Hidalgo County had administered 428,845 COVID-19 tests, and 345,220 of those tests yielded negative results.
Cameron County reported five additional COVID-19 related deaths and 25 new cases of the virus Wednesday.
The deaths include a Brownsville man in his 30s, a Harlingen man in his 50s, a La Feria man in his 60s, a Port Isabel woman in her 60s, and a San Benito man in his 60s. Wednesday’s deaths raise Cameron County’s death toll to 1,552.
Cameron County now has 38,056 confirmed cases of the virus there. The county also reported that an additional 135 people have recovered from the virus, raising that total to 34,229.
