Falls County COVID-19 cases still rising steadily

Falls County lacking mask enforcement enforcement procedures

Falls County has seen a total of 68 coronavirus cases since the inception of the virus back in December of 2019. 

Of those 68, 40 have been female, and 28 have been male. The split between the east and west side of Falls County is incredibly similar to those above, at 38 positives on the east side of the Brazos River and 28 on the west side. Overall, there are 4.1 cases per 1,000 people in Falls County, but that the county has seen zero fatalities. 

There were an estimated 37 active cases and 31 recovered, according to the Department of State Health Services’ calculations on July 20. There is a bit of confusion surrounding these numbers and their accuracy, as on Sunday, July 20, the data showed that there were only 12 recoveries and 56 active cases.It seems to have been updated appropriately.

Falls County continues to have the least amount of cases in the surrounding counties, despite increased testing. There have been a total of 2,262 tests administered, totalling 13.62 percent of the inhabitants. 

Limestone county is up to 118 total cases, with 62 currently active and an estimated 56 recovered. The County has administered 1,365 tests total and have had a single death recorded. Overall, Limestone county currently has 5.01 cases per 1,000 individuals in the population.

Robertson County, who saw synonymous numbers to Limestone in past weeks, now has 155 positive cases, which is 9.18 cases per 1,000 people. There are an estimated 106 active and 49 recovered cases. The County has administered just a couple more tests than Limestone as well, with 1,77 tests completed, but has had no fatalities. 

Milam County has increased steadily over the last weeks, up to 217 as of June 20. There are an estimated 158 recovered and 57 still active, totalling 8.81 positive cases per 1,000 persons. There have been 2,2282 tests given within Milam County. The county also recorded it’s second death last week.

McLennan now has more cases than Bell County, at a total of 3,413 compared to Bell County's 2,640. McLennan has an estimated 1,921 recovered cases and 1,346 active cases. There are 13.49 cases per 1,000 individuals in the county. There have been 24 deaths, the most recorded in any of the counties surrounding Falls. There have been more than 20,000 tests administered.

Bell County has an estimated 826 recovered cases and 1,797 active; the most active cases of the six counties. There have been 27,048 tests administered and 17 fatalities recorded. There are 7.47 cases per 1000 people in the county.

The State of Texas has seen a total of 332,434 positive cases. Of those cases, 177,871 have recovered, but 150,543 remain active. The state beat its own record of both new cases and deaths on Wednesday July 15, recording nearly 11,000 new cases and 110 deaths all in one day. The death record was beat again on Friday, July 17, with 174 deaths reported. There have been 4,020 deaths recorded in the state overall, but more seem to be expected. Texas requested additional mortuary trucks this week to accommodate an expected surge in the virus. These will be used as mobile sites as most funeral homes are at capacity as the death toll continues to rise.

The problem seems to lie with those not following the Governor’s Executive order requiring the public to wear masks. Falls County does not have a specific procedure in place to enforce this, according to Falls County Judge Jay Elliott.

“It’s up to the Sheriff’s Department and the police departments,” he said. 

Businesses have the right to turn away those not wearing facial coverings, but chain store employees have reported receiving backlash from superiors for doing so. 

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported this week that if every person would wear a mask , the United States could get the pandemic under control in one to two months. 

“The time is now,” Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the CDC, said during an interview with the Journal of the American Medical Association’s Dr. Howard Bauchner. “I think if we could get everybody to wear a mask right now I think in four, six, eight weeks we could bring this epidemic under control.”

“We are not defenseless against COVID-19,” he said in a press release. “Cloth face coverings are one of the most powerful weapons we have to slow and stop the spread of the virus – particularly when used universally within a community setting. All Americans have a responsibility to protect themselves, their families, and their communities.”

The Rosebud News

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