HOUSTON — There are not enough "THANK YOUs" in the world we can give to our first responders -- specifically our first responders here in Houston.
Not only have our Houston firefighters braved the ongoing battle of COVID-19 within our city, but now several have taken the long drive to El Paso to continue the COVID-19 fight as cases there spike at an alarming rate.
*EDITORIAL NOTE: The above video is about the 2-week shutdown in El Paso due to the surge in COVID cases*
The Houston Fire Department posted to Twitter photos of firefighters enduring the cold temperatures, helping dozens of COVID patients in EL Paso using mobile medical units that were deployed by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.
The mobile medical units are being used to free up hospital beds in the area for COVID-19 patients.
A recent study released by the University of Texas shows the El Paso area could run out of hospital beds by Nov. 8.
As of Sunday, El Paso county health officials reported 772 new coronavirus cases, a day after a record 1,216 new cases were reported, making up more than 20 percent of the 3,793 new cases reported statewide. That brought the total cases since the pandemic first hit Texas to 862,375.
El Paso County Judge Ricardo Samaniego has placed the city under a two-week shutdown of non-essential activities after medical resources were overwhelmed by COVID-19 patients.
“Our hospitals are at capacity, our medical professionals are overwhelmed, and if we don’t respond we will see unprecedented levels of death,” said Samaniego, the county's top elected official.
Among the non-essential services ordered to be closed are tattoo, hair and nail salons, as well as gyms and in-person dining. He also appealed to residents to avoid all non-essential activities. Grocery and drug stores, funeral homes, health care services and government activities were among the activities deemed essential.
Samaniego said all election-related activities, including campaigns and voting, also were deemed essential activities.