Falls County COVID-19 cases still rising steadily

Falls County has seen a total of 66 coronavirus cases since the inception of the virus back in December of 2019. Of those 66, 38 have been female, and 28 have been male. The split between the east and west side of Falls County is incredibly similar, at 37 positives on the east side of the Brazos River and 29 on the west side. 

There are an estimated 38 active cases and 28 recovered, according to the Department of State Health Services’ calculations. They also state that there are 3.98 cases per 1,000 people in Falls County, but that the county has seen zero fatalities. 

Falls County continues to have the least amount of cases in the surrounding counties, despite increased testing. There have been a total of 2,249 tests administered, totalling 13.54 percent of the inhabitants. 

Limestone county is up to 114 total cases, with 62 currently active and an estimated 52 recovered. The County has administered 1,331 tests totl and have had a single death recorded. Overall, Limestone county currently has 4.84 cases per 1,000 individuals in the population. There has been one death due to COVID-19.

Robertson County, who saw synonymous numbers to Limestone in past weeks, now has 143 positive cases, which is 8.47 cases per 1,000 people. There are an estimated 97 active and 46 recovered cases. The County has administered just a couple more tests than Limestone as well, with 1,345 tests completed, but has had no fatalities. 

Milam County has increased steadily over the last weeks, up to 203 as of June 17. There are an estimated 142 recovered and 61 still active, totalling 8.24 positive cases per 1,000 persons. There have been 2,208 tests given within Milam County. It also recorded it’s second death last week.

McLennan now has more cases than Bell County, at a total of 3,096 compared to Bell county's 2,567. McLennan has an estimated 1,784 recovered cases and 1,312 active cases. There are 12.23 cases per 1000 individuals in the county. There have been 20 deaths, the most recorded in any of the counties surrounding Falls. There have been nearly 20,000 tests administered.

Bell County has an estimated 764 recovered cases and 1,803 active; the most active cases of the six counties. There have been 26,450 tests administered and 15 fatalities recorded. There are 7.26 cases per 100 people in the county.

The State of Texas has seen a total of 307,572 positive cases. Of those cases, 162,191 have recovered, but 145,381 remain active. It 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. There have been 3,735 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 Elliot. 

“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 time. 

““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.”