CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Numbers of COVID-19 cases in Nueces County in the week leading to Christmas were in the moderate range.
Chair of the Infectious Diseases Department at Driscoll Children's Hospital Dr. Jaime Fergie said that Corpus Christi is already seeing an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases.
While exact figures for the Christmas holiday week are not available, just before Christmas, 26 people were hospitalized in Nueces County.
"You may remember when we used to have 3,400 individuals in the hospital with COVID-19. So having 26 right now and nine in ICU is something that can be managed. Still many of those cases are preventable," he said.
Fergie said one of the best ways for prevention is to get yourself vaccinated to avoid passing any symptoms to family and friends.
The Texas Medical Center in Houston reported a COVID-19 surge just before the holidays began. They also predicted a spike in cases once celebrations were over.
Fergie said that he encourages residents to not ignore any symptoms.
"And some of the symptoms are the same. To begin with, runny nose, cough, congestion, sore throat, fever. So if you tested negative for COVID, well, maybe you have one of the other viruses," he said.
Fergie adds that he hopes the resurgence in cases doesn't grow to a higher level.
"It's coming back. Hopefully it's not going to be nearly as bad as it was before, but we are seeing more cases and it's just the beginning," he said.
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