EL PASO, Texas (AP) — Residents in the Texas border city of El Paso have been urged to stay home for two weeks as an increase in coronavirus cases overwhelms hospitals.
The uptick in virus cases has also prompted the state to dedicate part of the city’s civic center as a makeshift heath care center for the ill.
On Sunday night, El Paso County’s top elected official issued a stay-at-home order that imposes a daily curfew from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. Violators could be fined $500 under the order.
Earlier Sunday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said 50 hospital beds will be set up in the city’s convention center and another 50 beds could be added if needed. The state has already sent over 900 medical personnel to El Paso, some of whom will be staffing the convention center site.
El Paso County health officials reported 772 new coronavirus cases Sunday, a day after a record 1,216 new infections were reported.
