El Paso County Judge Samaniego extends virus shutdown until Dec. 1

EL PASO, Texas -- El Paso County Judge Ricardo Samaniego on Wednesday extended the county's emergency order shutting down non-essential businesses and services past the Thanksgiving holiday period in an effort to combat the spread of Covid-19.

Samaniego's order will now be in effect until Tuesday, Dec. 1 at 2 a.m., unless a court battle challenging his power to do so were to succeed.

"Our hospitals continue to be overwhelmed," Samiengo said, adding that he believes the county's shutdown order saves lives everyday it is in effect.

The judge said over 50% of all patients hospitalized in El Paso currently are being treated for Covid-19 illness.

Earlier Wednesday, El Paso reported 14 more virus deaths as hospitalizations also reached a new peak. In addition, Texas has now become the first state in the nation to exceed a million virus infections.

Samaniego also said he has received no reply from Gov. Greg Abbott despite his letter to the state's chief executive a week ago seeking to reach common ground on how to handle El Paso's Covid-19 crisis.

Abbott did issue a statement as Samaniego was holding his briefing, saying he has deployed additional resources to El Paso to help battle the virus.

"These resources include medical personnel, medical equipment, personal protective equipment (PPE), mobile testing sites, and more," said a statement from the governor's office, although it provided no specifics.

You can view Samaniego's shutdown order extension below along with his entire news conference announcing it in the video player beneath the order.