Bexar County reported one additional death and 393 new coronavirus cases Sunday evening, bringing the weekend total to 10 deaths and 1,151 new cases of COVID-19. The patient who died was a man in his 80s who had underlying health conditions.
Since the start of the pandemic there have been 36,083 cases and 323 deaths recorded in the county.
A slow decline in the number of active cases and in patients hospitalized locally continues as mask regulations and social distancing practices remain in place.
Ages and ethnic backgrounds of deceased
1 man of unknown ethnicity in his 80s
The City of San Antonio is still marking the current risk level between severe and critical based on local statistics.
“Total hospitalizations have decreased slightly from yesterday, but the severity of our cases remains relatively unchanged,” Mayor Ron Nirenberg wrote in his daily social media update Sunday evening. “Please wear your mask if you have to be in a public space.”
Currently there are 5,780 active cases in Bexar County. There are 1,044 patients hospitalized in San Antonio, 418 of whom are in ICUs and 287 of whom are on ventilators. Metro Health is reporting 12 percent of staffed beds are available, as are 46 percent of ventilators.
“Our hospital system remains under severe stress,” Nirenberg said during Friday’s daily briefing.
As Texas faced its first named Atlantic storm of the 2020 hurricane season over the weekend, Hurricane Hanna, local officials have been busy preparing to potentially receive evacuees from neighboring counties.
Hanna made landfall Saturday evening as a Category 1 hurricane, with Gov. Greg Abbott declaring a state of emergency for 32 counties. Many of these counties – including Nueces, Harris, and Galveston – have become recent COVID-19 hotspots.
Parts of South Texas and northern Mexico reported severe flooding and power outages Sunday as the storm continues to move inland across the Rio Grande Valley.
Freeman Coliseum is set up as a reception center for evacuees fleeing the hurricane, officials from the City’s Office of Emergency Management said Saturday. Those who arrive will be given information about available hotels, but the arena is not serving as a shelter.
“We’ve got several hotels coordinated in the event we need to relieve evacuees, but we’re in the danger zone in so many ways with regard to the storm and the threat of increased transmission if we were to have a lot of activity coming here,” Nirenberg said Friday. “So we’re asking everybody to be on guard.”
Nirenberg is set to give an overview of the City’s progress and warning indicators at Monday evening’s daily briefing.
