NUECES COUNTY, Texas — Researchers and officials are continuing to monitor the increase in COVID-19 cases across the Coastal Bend.
"Today we were projecting that if we continued on the same trend, we'd end up with 500 new cases," Texas A&M University Corpus Christi and Nueces County COVID-19 Task Force's Doctor Bird said.
Instead, Nueces County reported 204 on Sunday. A better outcome than predicted.
The thing is, is that the testing isn't there most likely to get us to that number because less proportion of all the people getting covid now are getting tested," Doctor Bird said.
Doctor Bird said a lack of testing could result in lower reported cases than the actual.
"We had three weeks of data, showing this really good fit to this model that now in this past week when we've had alot of 200's and the 300 here and there, not a huge increases in a day the model has still allowed us to estimate whats happening even if the number of new cases coming back doesnt exactly match." Bird said.
He said even though there may not be enough tests, that doesn't mean Nueces County will be in a worse position for treating or dealing with covid.
However, people should remain cautious because even if the reported numbers slow, the virus is still spreading.
"We're experiencing one of the worst outbreaks of covid in the state, which is experiencing a bad outbreak of covid when you take into account our population size." Bird said.
"The number of the patients being hospitalized everyday, is increasing, the number os the people in icu are increasing, we are seeing more deaths in the last week than we saw in the last three months and I can tell you in the next week we are probably going to see even more deaths," Doctor Salim Surani said.
Doctor Surani said the increase in the numbers impacts the community, most importantly area hospitals and medical staff.
"Hospitals are getting really really full and alot of the patients who should be in the ICU are now being managed in a non-icu setting because no availability or challenge situation with the beds," he said.
Both doctors said they hope that with new policies in effect, like the mask requirement and Governor Greg Abbott taking a pause on the phases to reopen Texas, people will begin to see the transmission rate lower, but it'll take everyone.
"We all have to stand up as individual person and fill our individual, social community responsibility and together we can beat it," Doctor Surani said.
For the latest updates on coronavirus in the Coastal Bend, click here.
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