So far COVID-19 has killed more than 100,000 people across America, with states implementing different lockdown policies. Around 1,920 of those deaths took place in Texas with the state recording 81,000 people testing positive for coronavirus.
According to Newsweek health experts report surging cases in nearly all of Texas’s population centres.
Speaking to CBS Austin Dr Peter Hotez, a professor at Baylor College’s National School of Tropical Medicine, warned the situation in Dallas and Houston looks “absolutely apocalyptic”.
This view was backed on Thursday by the daily briefing from Dr Dawn Emerick, metro health director for Bexar Country, in San Antonio.
Dr Emerick stated: “We are entering a second wave.”
She added many Texans were becoming complacent about the coronavirus and had stopped wearing face masks.
Dr Emerick suggested the surge of cases could be linked to Memorial Day, usually seen as the start of the American summer, when thousands of people congregated on beaches and lakes around the state.
She noted the current wave of protests following the death of George Floyd are unlikely to have made an impact on the number of confirmed cases so far.
Texas began reopening on April 30 when Governor Greg Abbott removed the stay-at-home order which had been in place since later March.
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“As many Texans continue to gather for protests, the state is also taking steps to address potential surges in COVID-19 cases.
“We are ensuring that Texans can continue to safely exercise their First Amendment Rights while putting protocols in place to identify and mitigate any spread of COVID-19.”
The first COVID-19 case to be officially confirmed was announced on January 21.
As the number of cases grew many state governors imposed partial or complete lockdowns.
Several of these were sharply criticised by President Trump via social media.
Speaking to Bloomberg about the Texas situation Harris County Judge Lina said: “We may be approaching the precipice of a disaster.
“It’s out of hand right now. The good news is it’s not severe out of hand.”
Houston and Harris Country reported the most new cases of coronavirus, with 8,952 and 15,552 still active respectively.
Dallas County, in the north of the state, has also been particularly badly hit.