This story has been updated.
Mayor Ron Nirenberg was tested for coronavirus after a possible exposure, and the test came back negative, a spokesman confirmed late Tuesday evening.
The mayor came into contact with someone Saturday who tested positive for the coronavirus and will stay home for 14 days per public health guidance, they said.
The mayor took a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test, which determines if someone has an active infection. He does not have any symptoms, the spokesman said, but wants to take every precaution.
“I was wearing a mask at the time of the exposure and am currently awaiting my test results,” Nirenberg tweeted earlier Tuesday. “Public health professionals have assured me that anyone I’ve come into contact with since the exposure is not at an elevated risk of contracting COVID-19.”
Because the exposure was so recent, it’s likely that he will be tested again as per the Texas Department of Health and Human Services’ guidelines that state such tests do “not help determine if a person who was exposed to COVID-19 will develop [an] active infection during the two weeks after exposure.”
In the meantime, Nirenberg said, “I will be conducting all of my routine business, including public meetings, remotely. With cases on the rise, we have to remain vigilant. We’re all in this together, San Antonio, so let’s continue to wear our masks, wash our hands regularly and keep our distance in public.”
Tuesday morning, Nirenberg was the special guest reader at Hemisfair’s Story Time children’s book reading series, which is online.
Nirenberg was notably absent from the joint City and Bexar County coronavirus update Tuesday evening, with Assistant City Manager Colleen Bridger filling in for him. Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff recently self-quarantined after a possible exposure, but two tests came back negative last week and he rejoined the nightly briefing Monday.
Officials reported no additional deaths, 332 new coronavirus cases, and 306 patients hospitalized as of Tuesday, 49 of which were new admissions. The positivity rate in Bexar County, which has been increasing since October, is currently 8.4 percent compared to Texas’ 10.5 percent.
The recent uptick of cases in San Antonio reflects what health officials are seeing across the U.S., Bridger said.
“It’s more prevalent in the community and the more it’s out there, the more people are going to get sick,” she said. “If you started to let your guard down, now is the time to put it back up.”
