Hospitals in at least two Texas counties are at full capacity, prompting county judges to ask residents to stay at home.

Texas Hospital
Reuters Connect

Judges in Star and Hidalgo counties had sent out emergency alerts on Friday. They warned that local hospitals in the Rio Grande Valley were at full capacity.

Starr County

Judge Eloy Vera of Starr County posted on his Facebook account that there have been 18 deaths in the county. Two patients, who were severely ill, have to be flown out of the area for treatment. The first patient was taken to San Antonio, while the other one to Dallas.

"The local and valley hospitals are at full capacity and have no more beds available. I urge all of our residents to please shelter-in-place, wear face coverings, practice social distancing and AVOID GATHERINGS," Vera wrote on his post.

Because of the rapid spread of the coronavirus in the county, Vera issued a public safety alert announcing "Level 1 Severe."

Hidalgo County

Meanwhile, Judge Richard Cortez of Hidalgo County did the same. On his Twitter post, he also announced that hospitals in the county are at full capacity.

Cortez urged the public to shelter in place, avoid public gatherings, wear a face mask all the time, and observe social distancing.

He also asked everyone to celebrate the Fourth of July responsibly and only call 911 if necessary. Cortez is seeing a surge of COVID-19 infections if people in Hidalgo would not be cautious.

Texas Governor Issues Executive Order

Texas Governor Gregg Abbott, on the other hand, issued an executive order (EO) mandating everyone to wear a face mask in public places. The EO targets counties that have more than 20 cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Abbott's order also allows the mayors and judges to restrict the gatherings of more than 10 people. Through this, the spread of the virus will be controlled.

The Texas governor further stressed that wearing a face mask has been proven to be effective in slowing down the spread of COVID-19.

Check these out!