LAREDO, Texas—The City of Laredo and Webb County have confirmed the sixth death in Laredo related to COVID-19. The City and County want to express their most sincere condolences to the family and want them to know that our counselors are available.
A woman in her 70s with underlying health conditions had tested positive for COVID-19 and was being treated at Laredo Medical Center when she died on Saturday, April 4, 2020.
The City of Laredo Health Department reminds the public that the coronavirus can be present in their system even while the person presents no symptoms. Some may be asymptomatic, while others may initially have mild to moderate symptoms that can include high fever, cough and shortness of breath. The majority of patients will recover, but some may need to be hospitalized due to complications. The majority of our local positive cases have recovered while quarantined in their home. Please follow health department COVID-19 prevention guidelines regarding social distancing and proper hygiene. Persons should stay at home, not gather in groups and cover their nose and mouth when around others.
Laredo Medical Center issued a statement:
“We are sad to confirm that another patient has died from COVID-19. We appreciate the valiant work done by our caregiving team and we extend our deepest sympathies to the patient’s family and loved ones. It is vitally important for all members of our community to practice hand hygiene and social distancing which are the best ways at this moment to slow the spread of the virus.”
The health department continues to conduct contact investigation on persons who have tested positive to determine possible exposure to others. If the health department has not contacted you there is no need to take any action at this time. However, if someone is sick they need to stay home. In households with a positive person, there should only be one dedicated caregiver. Other family members must stay apart and practice good hygiene and social distancing. The positive person should be in a dedicated room and must wear a mask and not gather with other family members. The caregiver should also wear a mask when providing care. This is extremely important as evidence points to strong clustering among positive persons. Stay home if you are sick and call your doctor. Do not go to the office, call your doctor first. If it is an emergency, call 9-1-1.
As of 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 4, a total of 444 persons have been tested, 281 of those tests have resulted negative, 98 have resulted positive, 65 are pending, 7 have recovered, 14 remain hospitalized, and 6 have passed.
In order to safeguard legally-protected information, the City of Laredo is not publically releasing personal or identifiable information regarding any cases as it relates to COVID-19 testing, results or monitoring.
As the City of Laredo tests more people, more time is required to analyze the data. For this reason, as we release information twice a day, the City of Laredo will be prioritizing total number of people who have been tested, positive cases, recoveries and deaths. Visit www.cityoflaredo.com/coronavirus.html to see an continuously-updated interactive graph of COVID-19 in Laredo.
Please continue to do your part in preventing the spread of all diseases. Follow the guidelines below:
· Follow the City and County order to stay at home and practice social distancing.
· Wash your hands often
· Wear a mask if possible
· Avoid touching your face
· Avoid close contact with people who are sick
· Stay home when you’re sick
· Cover all coughs and sneezes
· Clean frequently-touched surfaces
