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Continuing its trend of lower case numbers, Dallas County reported 537 new coronavirus cases Thursday.
Officials also reported six more deaths from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus.
Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said in a written statement that the lower number of cases “continued on a positive trend.”
But he added that hospitalizations for the virus had increased slightly, to 658 on Wednesday. There were 609 emergency-room visits for symptoms of COVID-19 — about 26% of all visits.
Because of this, people should continue taking precautions against the virus, Jenkins said.
“If just a few of us loosen our resolve and give in to our selfish desires to do things not recommended by the doctors, we will find ourselves in a much worse position than we have been in before,” he said. “There is still rampant community spread and continued vigilance on all of our part will be necessary to bring it under control.”
Five of the victims were Dallas residents: a man in his 50s, a man and woman in their 70s, and two women in their 90s who were both residents of a long-term care facility. The remaining victim was a Richardson woman in her 60s who was a resident of a long-term care facility.
The county now has recorded 664 deaths and 49,269 cases, or about 18.7 for every 1,000 residents. Dallas County does not report recoveries.
Across the state, 322 deaths from COVID-19 were reported Thursday. There were also 8,800 new coronavirus cases. Texas has had 6,274 deaths from the virus and more than 410,000 confirmed cases.
Hospitalizations in Texas fell slightly to 9,296, with 1,648 of them in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, according to data from the Texas Department of State Health Services.
Jenkins said he’s proud of how North Texans have responded to the virus. He asked that people order takeout and delivery from their favorite restaurants, instead of dining in, which doctors do not recommend.
“They and their employees need your help,” Jenkins said. “If we want our restaurants to survive the COVID-19 economic downturn, then we need to frequent them for takeout and delivery.”Tarrant County
Tarrant County officials reported eight new COVID-19 deaths and 672 additional cases Thursday.
Six of the latest victims were from Fort Worth: two men in their 40s, a man and woman in their 70s and two men in their 80s. The others were an Arlington woman in her 90s and a White Settlement man in his 80s.
There are 642 people hospitalized with the virus, and 13,648 have recovered, according to county data.
The county has recorded 363 coronavirus deaths and 27,823 confirmed cases, or about 13.2 for every 1,000 residents.
Collin County
On Thursday, Collin County reported 86 new coronavirus cases and one death, a Princeton man in his 60s.
The county’s totals have risen to 82 COVID-19 deaths and 6,253 cases, or about 6 for every 1,000 residents.
Hospitalizations in the county were at 162 and 4,741 people have recovered, according to the county’s data.
Denton County
Denton County reported 188 new coronavirus cases, raising its total to 6, 681 — about 7.5 for every 1,000 residents.
No new COVID-19 deaths were reported, leaving the county’s toll at 53.
There are 89 people hospitalized with the virus and there have been 3,588 recoveries, according to county data.
Other counties
Rockwall County officials said 18 residents and eight employees at Beacon Harbor Healthcare and Rehabilitation in Rockwall have tested positive for COVID-19, and that three have recovered. Another round of testing at the facility will be done on Saturday.
The Texas Department of State Health Services has taken over reporting coronavirus cases for several North Texas counties, and they may not report updated totals every day.
The latest numbers are:
- Rockwall County: 750 cases, 17 deaths.
- Kaufman County: 1,681 cases, 19 deaths.
- Ellis County: 2,407 cases, 33 deaths.
- Johnson County: 1,432 cases, 22 deaths.