Lower Valley assisted living facility accuses city of El Paso of ignoring virus outbreak

EL PASO, Texas -- The city of El Paso is denying claims made by employees of an assisted living facility in the Lower Valley who said their calls for help to battle an outbreak of the coronavirus are falling on deaf ears.

Employees of Villas Del Sol claim 911, the city's emergency number, is refusing to send personnel to the facility and transport residents who tested positive for Covid-19.

Workers also claim the city is delaying further testing of residents to determine just how widespread Covid-19 is in their facility.

Villas Del Sol workers said five patients and five employees have already tested positive for Covid-19. One of those is the director of the facility who tested positive and is at home in self quarantine.

Sylvia Porras reitereated what other employees have said: 911 is not sending anyone to pick up and transfer residents who show Covid-19 symptoms.

"We have residents that have symptoms of high temperature. And when we do activate 9-1-1, they're refusing to take the resident," she told ABC-7. "So we're stuck with residents that we're clueless if they have the Covid or not when we can't even get adequate testing down at our facility."

But El Paso Fire Chief Mario D'agostino, who is also the city's emergency management director, maintained Porras' claim is false.

"That is not true. If you just want a transport, just a ride, we do not just give rides," he explained. "If you have a medical emergency, we'll you transport you to the appropriate hospital."

The facility's management and staff are calling on the city to come out and test every resident there so they can get a true sense of how large the virus outbreak is.

While things are in limbo, numerous employees are now said to be quitting their jobs at the assisted living facility out of fear that they may contract the virus and pass it on to their families.