Texas hits new high in daily virus death count with 197 fatalities

AUSTIN, TEXAS — Texas reported a new daily high number of deaths Wednesday from the illness caused by the new coronavirus, even as the state reported a slight decrease in the number of people who have tested positive.

The Department of State Health Services reported a Wednesday Covid-19 death toll hit a record 197, beating the previous daily high of 174 deaths set Friday. That brought the official coronavirus death toll in Texas to at least 4,348 total as of Wednesday.

As Texas set a record, El Paso recorded its second highest daily death count of the pandemic, with nine fatalities.

The state reported the number of new confirmed cases reached at least 9,879, which is slightly off the string of 10,000-case days over the past week. That brought the overall caseload to at least 351,618 since the state began tracking began the outbreak in early March.

The true number of cases in is likely higher because many people have not been tested, and studies suggest people can be infected and not feel sick.