More than 100 Texas residents died from the coronavirus Thursday.
The grim milestone marks the second consecutive day the state broke its record for single-day COVID-19-related deaths, with 98 coming Wednesday. Texas also reported 9,782 new cases Thursday, bringing its total to 230,346, with 2,918 resulting in death.
According to a Houston Chronicle analysis, there are currently around 9,610 patients hospitalized for COVID-19, another record, with 11,575 beds and 5,288 ventilators available.
Gov. Greg Abbott had previously suspended elective surgeries at hospitals in Bexar, Cameron, Dallas, Harris, Hidalgo, Nueces, Travis and Webb counties in anticipation of the overload.
“The State of Texas continues to implement strategies to help ensure ample supply of hospital beds for COVID-19 patients,” he said. “By expanding this directive to include the counties within these 11 TSAs, we are freeing up more resources to address upticks in COVID-19 related cases. The State of Texas will continue to do everything we can to mitigate the spread of this virus and support our hospitals and health care professionals as they care for their fellow Texans. We must all come together and continue to practice social distancing, wear a face-covering in public, and stay home when possible.”
Gov. Abbott also issued an executive order last Friday mandating that all bars implement new safety measures. The order is a reversal of a previous decision allowing businesses to open more freely. Under the new rule, bars must close at noon and put strict safety measures on outdoor activities.
