Hidalgo County officials confirmed Tuesday that 26 more people have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of confirmed cases here to 610.
In a news release, the county said that there are currently over 4,000 tests awaiting results, a result of the state of Texas mandating that 2% of the population and 100% of nursing home residents and staff be tested.
“We expect to continue to see an upward trend in the number of positive cases as testing becomes more widely available,” county Judge Richard F. Cortez said in the release. “It is yet another reminder that the danger of infection remains and precautions to avoid infection should still be followed.”
A total of 16,591 tests have been administered in the county.
Later Tuesday evening, Cameron County announced that 23 more individuals tested positive there for COVID-19, raising the county’s cases to 799.
The county also announced that 15 more people have recovered from the virus, bringing that total to 581.
Earlier Tuesday, Starr County reported its 38th confirmed case of COVID-19, that of a man in his early 20s tested positive for the virus.
Dr. Jose Vazquez, Starr County health authority, said the man acquired the virus through contact with an individual who previously tested positive for COVID-19.
Willacy County also confirmed its second death related to COVID-19 on Tuesday. The county announced that a man in his 60s who had tested positive for COVID-19 died on Saturday. He was being treated at Valley Baptist Medical Center in Harlingen.
The news came on the same day that the county confirmed two more cases of COVID-19.
The new cases are that of a woman in her 50s who acquired the virus through contact with another individual who previously tested positive, and a woman in her 30s who contracted the coronavirus from an individual who previously tested positive, according to a news release from the Department of State Health Services.
The two new cases bring the total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 to 21. Both women are currently isolated, the release stated, and DSHS is assisting the county in identifying individuals the patient may have come in contact with so that they may be isolated and monitored for symptoms.
