Hidalgo County reported five COVID-19 deaths Friday — the lowest figure since Aug. 17, when health officials reported four deaths.
All of the five deaths reported Friday were people who were unvaccinated, according to a news release from the county. They ranged in age from their 40s to their 70s, and lived in Donna, Edinburg and Mercedes. The hometown of a man in his 50s was not disclosed.
At 42 cases, nearly half of the 101 new COVID-19 cases reported by the county Friday were under the age of 11. Pediatric cases, or those under the age of 19, made up about 60% of the new cases with a total count of 63.
All of the other age groups had 10 or fewer new cases.
There were also another 73 school-related cases. Two were staff members, and the rest were students.
So far, the virus has led to the deaths of 3,388 Hidalgo County residents.
In Cameron County, officials reported 19 COVID-related deaths Thursday in an apparent backlog from the state.
“These reports occurred in the last month and were retrieved from the Texas Department of State Health Services vital statistics data which was temporarily unavailable,” county officials said Thursday.
The youngest among the deaths was a Brownsville woman in her 20s. Others included a Brownsville woman in her 30s, four people in their 40s, five people in their 50s, four people in their 60s, one man in his 70s, two people in their 80s and one man in his 90s or older.
The majority of the COVID-related deaths were unvaccinated, with the exception of two people according to officials. The death toll in Cameron County is now at 1,938.
Of the 66 new cases reported Thursday, Cameron County officials noted 19 were from facilities housing unaccompanied minors and detention centers.
All of the cases in county facilities were people younger than 19, but older than 10.
The remaining 47 cases reported in Cameron County outside the facilities were led by young adults in their 20s with eight cases. People younger than 19, but older than 10 and adults in their 30s were the next age groups, with seven cases each.
As of Thursday, the total number of COVID-19 cases in Cameron County was 52,508.
Additionally, the county also reported 90 people recovered from the virus on Thursday, increasing that total to 48,258.
As for Cameron County’s vaccination efforts, officials said 80.79% of their 12 and older population are fully vaccinated, with 93.83% receiving at least one dose.
The county also reported 85.8% of their 65 and older population are fully vaccinated, with 93.72% receiving at least one dose.
