Coronavirus Kills 2 More, Increasing Tarrant County's Death Toll To 3
TARRANT COUNTY (CBSDFW.COM) - Two more Tarrant County residents, a man and a woman, have died from the coronavirus.
Their deaths bring the county's total to three.
The man was from Hurst while the woman who died was from Fort Worth.
She is the first person to die from the virus in Fort Worth.
Tarrant County Public Health Director Vinny Taneja said both patients had underlying health conditions, but he declined to provide further details about the cases, citing HIPAA laws regarding confidentiality of health information. "We express our deepest sympathy to the families," he said.
Tarrant County Public Health staff said they will investigate to determine who the patients may have come into contact with before they tested positive; close contacts may be appropriately isolated, monitored for symptoms and tested as needed.
COVID-19 causes respiratory illness with cough, fever, and shortness of breath, and may lead to bronchitis and severe pneumonia. The United States has now more than 189,000 reported cases of COVID-19.
"We want residents of Tarrant County to continue to be mindful of basic preventive measures to protect themselves from COVID-19 and other respiratory viruses," Taneja said.
These include:
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
- Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
- Stay home when you are sick. If you have trouble breathing, or a persistent fever, call your primary care provider.
- Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue or your sleeve.
- Frequently clean and disinfect touched objects and surfaces.
For more information visit coronavirus.tarrantcounty.com or call the information line at 817-248-6299.
COVID-19 has now spread to more than 180 countries.
