Texas Coronavirus Gains Nearly 10K Cases, A Record 10K Admissions

AUSTIN, TX — Texas gained 9,765 more cases of the coronavirus, 95 more deaths and 313 more hospitalizations over the past 24 hours as the state grapples with exponential upticks in illness.

According to a Texas Department of State Health Services statistical dashboard that is updated daily, there have now been 240,111 positive cases of coronavirus since the contagious respiratory illness began sweeping across the state. With the additional 300-plus hospitalizations recorded Friday, the statewide total has now risen to 10,002 admissions. And with the 95 new deaths, the historical fatality count has grown to 3,013.

The Texas Tribune crunched Friday's coronavirus numbers with unvarnished bluntness: "The rate of deaths in Texas has been accelerating. On Friday, the state surpassed 3,000 deaths 24 days after 2,000 deaths were reported. It took 53 days to get from the first death to 1,000 deaths and 39 days to get from 1,000 to 2,000 deaths."

The 9,765 new coronavirus cases reported Friday are a mere 17 fewer than the 9,782 reported on Thursday and 214 fewer than the number reported on Wednesday. The number of new deaths reported. The number of deaths is just three shy of the level recorded on Wednesday, and just ten less than the record 105 fatalities reported on Thursday.

Amid the grim statistics and painful permutations, the metric of recovered patients many skeptics point to as purported evidence of a perceived exaggeration to the scourge's potency now totals 122,996. But the number of active cases — 114, 102 as of Friday — is near the point of matching and even ultimately outpacing that hopeful datum.

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According to the state dashboard, the counties recording the greatest number of coronavirus cases so far are:

• Harris: 40,919 cases.
• Dallas: 30,361 cases.
• Bexar: 17,679 cases.
• Tarrant: 16,700 cases.
• Travis: 13,864 cases.
• El Paso: 8,746 cases.
• Hidalgo: 6,060 cases.
• Galveston: 5,320 cases.
• Nueces: 5,260 cases.
• Fort Bend: 4,524 cases.
• Collin: 4,108 cases.
• Denton: 3,697 cases.
• Williamson: 3,617 cases.
• Jefferson: 3,438 cases.
• Hays: 3,409 cases.
• Lubbock: 3,376 cases.
• Brazoria: 3,272 cases.
• Cameron: 3,246 cases.

Seeing the bolstered illness trajectory, Gov. Greg Abbott has recently taken steps hoping to stem the tide: Ordering bars to close again; shuttering tubing and rafting operations; pausing his own economic reopening that began May 1; strongly urging the wearing of protective face coverings that are seen as among the most effective tactics to help blunt the spread of illness — along with keeping six feet apart from others and washing one's hands often.

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But for now, Texans have come to expect big daily rises in illness. What's worse, the governor told various media outlets this week the numbers could get worse in the coming days. Abbott opted to reopen the coronavirus-stalled state economy starting May 1 — becoming the second governor after Georgia to attempt an economic jump-start by gradually allowing businesses to open. The illness has spread since then, and for now shows no sign of abating anytime soon.