353 new El Paso virus cases; over 2,100 in a week, tops 9,000 total

EL PASO, Texas -- El Paso public health officials reported 353 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, racking up a weekly total of more than 2,100 and a cumulative count that now exceeds 9,000 throughout the pandemic.

There were no new deaths reported, so the fatality count remained at 150, but there were 15 deaths tallied for the week ending Saturday.

The week's 2,146 virus cases represented a growth rate of nearly a third over the prior week. The infection count to date reached 9,099, with roughly a quarter of those cases occurring those week. To date, over half of all those cases (4,885) now involve El Pasoans under the age of 40.

According to officials, there were 3,377 active cases as of Saturday, with  5,572 El Pasoans listed as having recovered.

Hospitalizations showed a decline of ten patients, down to 251 on Saturday. Of those, 84 patients were in intensive care with 31 requiring the use of ventilators.