Vaccine Appointments Delayed As Winter Weather Rolls In

As local officials monitor the trajectory of the pandemic and rush to administer the COVID-19 vaccines, here’s what you need to know today:

• Dallas County reports 1,020 new COVID-19 cases and 45 deaths;
• Tips to get your backyard ready for cold temperatures;
• The State Fair of Texas wants your feedback.

Dallas County Reports 1,020 New COVID-19 Cases, 45 Deaths

Dallas County Thursday reported 1,020 more COVID-19 cases — 831 confirmed cases and 189 probable — and 45 more deaths.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, the county’s reported 238,774 conformed cases, 33,042 probable cases, and 2,654 deaths.

“Although our case numbers are declining, our deaths will continue to be high for some time due to the extremely high number of cases that we experienced in the preceding months and weeks,” said Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins.

Among the deaths was a Mesquite man in his 30s who died at his home, and a Dallas woman in her 40s who had no underlying health conditions.

Because of the weather conditions, vaccine distribution at Fair Park will be from 2-7 p.m., weather permitting, indoors in the Grand Building. The county says they’ll only be providing second doses for those who were scheduled to receive their second dose at Fair Park Monday-Thursday.

Weather permitting, the county will also provide vaccines Sunday for those who were scheduled to receive their second dose today. Fair Park will be closed due to weather on Saturday and Monday.

Since the Fair Park mega vaccine clinic opened in January, 43,281 first doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been given there. The remainder of this week’s allocations will be for second doses.

For more information and to check for any weather-related updates on Fair Park vaccine operations, please visit www.DallasCountyCovid.org.

We’ve also reported about the weather impact on vaccine distribution at Parkland here.

As vaccine rollout continues, hospitalizations are decreasing in North Texas.

The county reported 750 COVID-19 patients in hospitals Wednesday, and the number of emergency room visits for COVID-19 like symptoms in Dallas County was 460 for the same time-period, which represents around 18% of all emergency department visits in the county according to information reported to the North Central Texas Trauma Regional Advisory Council.

The county also reported 103 active long-term facility outbreaks. A cumulative total of 4,044 residents and 2,263 healthcare workers in long-term facilities in Dallas have been diagnosed with COVID-19. Of these, 876 were hospitalized and 513 have died.

The county’s also reported 16 outbreaks of COVID-19 in congregate-living facilities, such as homeless shelters, group homes, and halfway homes, in the past 30 days.

During the past 30 days, 7,012 COVID-19 cases in school-aged children and staff were reported from 713 separate K-12 schools in Dallas County. A total of 420 children under 18 have been hospitalized since the beginning of the pandemic, including 32 patients diagnosed with Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in children (MIS-C).

“The decisions we make today will determine what our COVID case numbers are in two weeks and what our death numbers are in the weeks that follow. This is why we must continue to make good choices and follow doctors’ advice and the science,” said Jenkins.

Get your Backyard Ready for the Low Temps this Weekend

With temperatures dropping this weekend, keep your house and backyard safe with the following tips from Jason Craven from Southern Botanical.

• Make sure everything is saturated before a freeze. Water helps insulate your plants, but be careful when watering planters because expanding water can break your pots.
• Make sure your irrigation system is off. The freeze sensors are often unreliable and it’s better to flip them off.
• Make sure faucets are covered and exterior hoses are disconnected.
• Agave’s, Sago Palms, and several other palms or succulent varieties won’t take the cold temperatures, so move them inside to ensure they stay warm. If this is not possible, covering them works just as well. You can even put a heat source under them, but be careful to avoid starting a fire.  

The Texas State Fair Wants Your Feedback

The State Fair of Texas is requesting Fair fans provide feedback to help plan for the  2021 fair.

They’re requesting guests fill out a survey to help plan for the fair and keep it as safe as possible. 

The survey takes less than 10 minutes, and those who fill it out will have the opportunity to register for a chance to win a pair of 2021 season passes. The exposition is scheduled to start September 24 and last until October 17  at Fair Park.

For the survey, visit this website. For more information about the fair, visit www.bigtex.com.