This story will be updated throughout the day as new information is released.
Denton County Public Health reported 19 confirmed COVID-19 deaths Thursday, which is the county's single-day record. This comes after no deaths were reported the past two days.
The deaths range from a Denton woman in her 40s to a Frisco man in his 80s.
Health officials also announced 458 new COVID-19 cases Thursday, down from 621 on Wednesday. There have now been 55,820 since tracking began in March.
There are currently six ICU beds available in Denton County hospitals. This number has remained below 10 since Jan. 22.
Of the occupied ICU beds, COVID-19 patients make up 54% of them.
Denton County Public Health said there are currently 174 people hospitalized with COVID-19.
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Dallas County hospitalizations hit lowest mark since late December
Dallas County health officials reported there are currently 901 people hospitalized with COVID-19.
This is the lowest it has been since there were 833 hospitalizations on Dec. 26.
This is now the fourth consecutive day county health officials have reported less than 1,000 hospitalizations. The record daily-high happened on Jan. 11 when 1,226 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 in Dallas County.
Health officials also reported 35 new deaths Thursday. The county is now seven deaths from the record-high weekly total, which was set last week, according to Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins.
These range from a Dallas man in his 40s to a Grand Prairie woman in her 90s. All but three had underlying high-risk health conditions.
Additionally, there are 1,149 new cases of COVID-19, 360 of which are considered probable because they came from antigen tests.
Dallas County has now had 232,200 total cases since tracking began in March.
Tarrant County adds 15 new deaths
Tarrant County Public Health reported 15 new COVID-19 deaths Thursday. The county has had 2,306 confirmed deaths since the first one was reported in March.
Thursday's deaths include:
- A Forth Worth man in his 80s
- An Arlington woman and a man in their 70s
- A Mansfield woman in her 70s
- Three Forth Worth women and two men in their 70s
- A Richland Hills woman in her 70s
- A Keller woman in her 70s
- A Saginaw woman in her 60s
- A Forth Worth man in his 60s
- A woman from Arlington in her 60s
- A woman from Saginaw in her 30s
All had underlying health conditions.
The county currently has 1,030 people hospitalized with COVID-19, down from 1,050 the previous day.
This is the sixth straight day Tarrant County's hospitalizations have remained below 1,100.
The last time this happened was Dec. 14-19.
Health officials also reported 1,663 new COVID-19 cases Thursday, bringing the total count to 225,399 since tracking began in March.
This is the third-most in the state behind Dallas and Harris counties.
Collin County down 73 hospitalizations in past two days
Collin County health officials reported there are currently 408 COVID-19 hospitalizations as of Thursday. The county had 436 hospitalizations on Wednesday and 481 on Tuesday.
There were also 279 new COVID-19 cases in Collin County Thursday, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services.
Collin County is averaging 491 new cases in the past seven days.
Cedar Hill school temporarily switches to remote learning due to cases among staff
Waterford Oaks Elementary School in Cedar Hill has temporarily canceled in-person learning from Feb. 4 through Feb. 12 due to COVID-19.
Cedar Hill ISD said in addition to positive cases among staff members, there are several other employees who are quarantined and are experiencing coronavirus-like symptoms.
The school district said teachers will be teaching from home for the next week. Students will be allowed to return to in-person learning on Feb. 16, as schools are closed on Feb.15 for Presidents’ Day.
"Grab and Go" meals will not be available at Waterford Oaks during the remote learning period. District officials said Plummer Elementary School at 1203 South Clark in Cedar Hill will provide meals instead. Pick-up hours are 4 to 6 p.m. Monday and 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4 to 6 p.m. Wednesday.
Mayor Eric Johnson visits vaccination clinic at Methodist Dallas Medical Center
Methodist Dallas Medical Center in Oak Cliff has launched its COVID-19 vaccination clinic.
The City of Dallas and Methodist Health System have partnered together to distribute 3,000 doses of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine to the public. Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson Johnson toured the hospital Thursday morning.
He said as of 10:30 a.m. the hospital had administered 600 vaccines. The mayor shared that the total vaccine process at Methodist Dallas Medical Center is taking about 20 minutes. People are required to stay for the 15 minute observation period after receiving the shot.
Anyone seeking a vaccine is required to register online and have an appointment. To register for the COVID-19 vaccine, you can visit the Dallas County Health and Human Services website here to register.
Earlier this week, the mayor said he believes that the partnership will help ensure the City’s very limited vaccine supply is distributed faster and more efficiently.
RELATED: City of Dallas partners with Methodist Dallas Medical Center for COVID-19 vaccine distribution
Community vaccine registration sites open in Southern Dallas
City officials have announced two new community vaccination registration sites that are targeting Phase 1A and 1B residents.
Groups 1A and 1B include healthcare workers and people 65 years and up or those with underlying medical conditions.
One registration site will be open Thursday, while the other site will operate Friday and Saturday. Below is information provided by city officials.
Registration: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Feb. 4
- Location: Singing Hills Recreation Center
6805 Patrol Way, Dallas, TX 75241
Registration: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Feb. 5 and Feb. 6
- Location: Highland Hills Library
6200 Bonnie View Rd., Dallas, TX 75241
City officials said facial coverings and social distancing protocols will be strictly enforced at both registration sites. To view a full list of registration sites, click here.
COVID-19 vaccine registration event Saturday
Oliver W. Holmes Humanities/Communications Academy is hosting a COVID-19 vaccine registration event Saturday. The event is scheduled to take place from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
The school is located at 2001 E Kiest Blvd in Dallas. The registration event is open to all Dallas County and non-Dallas County residents.
Organizers said people will remain in their cars while volunteers help them in filling out the forms. Vaccine registration information can also be found here.
COVID-19 cases in North Texas long-term care facilities on the decline
There were 26 new COVID-19 cases in North Texas nursing and assisting living facilities Thursday, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services.
State health officials include Collin, Cooke, Dallas, Denton, Grayson, Rockwall, Tarrant and Wise counties in Region 3.
The area is averaging 11 new cases a day for the past 14 days, the lowest since Aug. 1. The last time Region 3 had more than 100 daily cases was Jan. 16.
Since Aug. 1, the highest 14-day average is 238 and happened from Dec 28–Jan. 10.
