We’re keeping track of the most up-to-date news about the coronavirus in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area. Check back for updates.

Many Texas ranchers won’t survive multibillion-dollar financial hit from coronavirus

The spring pastures perfect for grazing cattle on Marisue Potts’ ranch have begun to dry. That means it’s time to sell.

Potts owns a ranch near Matador, Texas, where she keeps a herd of about 35 cattle. In a few weeks she’ll take her yearlings and full-grown steers to the nearest auction in Floydada. She expects to make less per head than she’s made in at least a decade.

“I’m going to take whatever hit I’m going to take financially,” Potts said. “There are ranchers who can hold on until this bottleneck is fixed and the markets stabilize but I can’t do that. I have to sell them or they might not make it to next season.”

The United States is facing a serious bottleneck in the beef supply chain as processing plants continue to close over COVID-19 outbreaks. Almost 5,000 workers have been infected.

This decrease in meat processing capacity has already caused shortages and price increases at grocery stores. It could also cost ranchers billions unless these plants come back to speed soon. But experts say it’s unlikely meatpacking plants will recover full capacity in the near future, even with President Donald Trump’s help, unless workers are protected.

Industry leaders warn that if meatpacking plant workers continue to get sick, cattle ranchers and consumers could be paying the price for years.

Fort Worth prison inmate dies from coronavirus as family fights for compassionate release

A fifth inmate from a Fort Worth federal medical prison died from the coronavirus on Sunday, hours before his family planned to take him off life support.

Guadalupe Ramos, 56, died at John Peter Smith Hospital early Sunday, his niece, Veronica Chavez, said.

Ramos had been at FMC Fort Worth since September 2017, the Bureau of Prisons said in a press release. He was sentenced in October 2012 in the Western District of Texas to a 210-month sentence for distributing 1 kilogram or more of heroin.

Ramos liked BBQs, spending time with his family and dancing, his niece said. He was looking forward to meeting his grandchildren and seeing his children.

“I know my uncle committed a crime, and he served nine years for it,” Chavez said. “But when he signed for his sentence, nowhere did it say he would be signing a death sentence.”

He also had diabetes, chronic lung disease, hepatitis, cirrhosis of the liver and high blood pressure, Chavez said.

Ramos’ pre-existing conditions were part of why Chavez fought to have her uncle released. A public defender helped her file a motion for his compassionate release in April, and he might have been able to go home as soon as May 15, but he was rushed to the hospital April 25, Chavez said.

Tarrant County confirms nearly 500 new coronavirus cases, most from Fort Worth prison

Tarrant County reported 485 new confirmed cases of the coronavirus Sunday, with 423 of those coming from the outbreak of the virus in a federal prison in Fort Worth.

The county confirmed two more deaths from the virus, bringing the total to 103, according to data from Tarrant County Public Health.

The county now has a total of 3,695 cases of the virus with 780 recoveries.

The Federal Medical Center Fort Worth prison reported a fifth inmate’s death from the virus Sunday.

FMC Fort Worth has a total of 636 inmates who have tested positive for COVID-19, but the prison has officially reported only 477 of those cases to the county, Tarrant County Public Health spokesman Richard Hill said. New cases will be added to the official count once FMC Fort Worth reports them to the county.

Tarrant County had 221 hospital beds occupied by coronavirus patients Sunday, according to Tarrant County Public Health. There are more than 2,000 beds unoccupied in the county and 408 available ventilators.

Dallas County reports 251 new cases, no coronavirus deaths on Mother’s Day

Dallas County reported 251 additional cases of coronavirus Sunday, but no additional deaths.

The total cases in Dallas County now total 5,870 with 143 total deaths from COVID-19.

“I wish everyone a happy Mother’s Day,” Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said on Twitter. “This Mother’s Day is different but need not be less meaningful.”

He encouraged people to continue to social distance, avoid unnecessary crowds, use cloth coverings when going out in public and maintain good hygiene.

Sunday was the eighth consecutive day the county has reported more than 200 new coronavirus cases. On Saturday, Dallas County closed out its worst week of the coronavirus pandemic with 250 new cases and eight more deaths reported.

5 injured in shooting at 600-person party in southeast Fort Worth park, police say

Five people were injured during a shooting at a crowded southeast Fort Worth park on Sunday, according to MedStar and police.

Two people were critically wounded and three had non-life-threatening injuries in the shooting at a party about 6:30 p.m. at Village Creek Park, Fort Worth Officer Buddy Calzada said. Police didn’t release the ages of the victims. MedStar said they were all adults.

About 600 people were attending the party in the center of the park, according to police. Witnesses said fireworks were set off in the park’s center followed by about 30 rounds of gunfire, Calzada said.

No arrests were announced Sunday night, and authorities were investigating who fired the shots and why.

The crowd had gathered in the park despite local and state government orders discouraging large gatherings during the coronavirus pandemic.

“We’ve tried to work with everybody to try not to cite them or ticket them, but ultimately people have a choice, and that’s just the choice they made tonight,” Calzada said. “Our job as the police is to investigate exactly what all took place here from beginning to end.”

4 Fort Worth-area school districts announce plans for in-person graduation ceremonies

Four more local school districts announced changes to their in-person graduations for the Class of 2020 on Friday in light of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Read more about graduation arrangements in Aledo, Eagle Mountain-Saginaw, Hurst-Euless-Bedford, and White Settlement here.