Alejandra Yañez | THE RIDER
In a news conference earlier today, Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño Jr. reported an additional 224 COVID-19 cases, raising the total number to 19,225.
As of this morning, an additional 15 deaths were reported, bringing the death toll to 510.
On Aug. 1, the county reported 12,077 cases. Treviño said after the first three days of this month, numbers were at 15,118 due to the backlog in cases.
Since then, the county has steadily reported about 200 to 300 cases per day.
Esmeralda Guajardo, the health administrator for Cameron County, said there will be another artificial spike in numbers within the next few days due to an “antiquated” state data system. This caused a buildup of cases in the last couple of weeks.
She said the most accurate data comes directly from the hospitals.
With the Labor Day holiday approaching and an uptick in military testing, Guajardo predicts another spike in the weeks to come.
On a positive note, Cameron County has reported 12,804 total cases recovered.
Manny Vela, chief executive officer of Valley Baptist Health System, said for the first time in multiple weeks there are under 100 COVID-19 patients in the hospitals. There are exactly 85 patients in the Harlingen hospital, with 37 still in the ICU.
“We have seen our numbers decline to some degree, but I think the emphasis to our community is that we’re still in the middle of this dogfight,” Vela said. “I don’t want anybody to believe that we’re not managing a crisis because this remains a crisis in our communities.”
He emphasized that although numbers have declined, these are still significant numbers in regard to capacity.
“This crisis is not going to disappear overnight,” Vela said. “This is most likely with us through the fall and through the wintertime into the early part of next year.”
Dr. James Castillo, the health authority for Cameron County, put numbers into perspective for the public.
As of last week, the statewide average for deaths per million population was 355. Cameron County has more than triple the state average with the current 510 deaths.
He also stressed the severity of COVID-19.
“I’ve not seen another illness that when you get put into the hospital with it, [it] can keep you on a ventilator as long as this one,” Castillo said. “The length of stay [of this virus] is amazing. With bacterial pneumonia, people are in and out of the hospital within a few days. … But with COVID, you could be in the hospital, on a ventilator, for weeks or more than a month.”
Castillo emphasised that many of the current ICU patients are those severe cases that have been in the hospital for over a month. He said the Rio Grande Valley is still in a crisis and needs to continue to stay vigilant of this virus.
“We’re becoming a bit desensitized to these numbers that we’re putting out, but they’re still very severe,” Castillo said.
With flu season approaching, he urges the public to get the flu shot because of multisystem inflammatory syndrome, which causes a more severe reaction when victims get COVID-19 plus another virus, such as the flu.
Treviño reminded the public that the Third Amended Emergency Management Order is still in effect.
This includes wearing facial coverings, limitations on gatherings, shelter-in-place, curfew and beach access closures. This order is effective through Sept. 9, unless extended or modified by Treviño.
Cameron and Willacy counties have partnered to provide financial assistance to their residents.
On July 7, the Cameron County Commissioners Court approved the Emergency Services Program, which provides aid for the economic effects of COVID-19. It can provide up to three months of assistance for housing payments/mortgage, utilities or food. Qualifications include being a resident of a colonia in Cameron or Willacy counties and proof of reduced income due to COVID-19.
Applications are available at the county precinct offices:
–Precinct 1, located at 9901 S. Browne Road in Brownsville
–Precinct 2, located at 2100 Gregory Avenue in Brownsville
–Precinct 3, located at 1390 I-69 Frontage Road in San Benito
–Precinct 4, located at 26623 White Ranch Road in La Feria
For more information, contact Associate Planners Victor G. Treviño at (956) 372-1249 or Lillian C. Blanchard at (956) 574-8132. Both work for the Cameron County Office of Economic Development & Community Affairs. The main office number is (956) 544-0828.
Numbers to call in regard to COVID-19 include: Cameron County Public Health, (956) 247-3650; Cameron County Emergency Management Department, (956) 547-7000; and UTRGV Testing, (833) 877-4863. For help with depression or anxiety that is related to the coronavirus, call the Texas Health and Human Services COVID-19 Mental Health Support Line at (833) 986-1919.
