Tarrant County ventilator use hits all-time high; COVID positivity rate rises sharply
Tarrant County reported 1,609 new coronavirus cases and 20 more deaths on Wednesday.
The latest pandemic-related deaths include a Fort Worth man and woman in their 30s, a Fort Worth woman in her 60s, a Sansom Park woman in her 70s, an Arlington woman in her 70s, a Benbrook man in his 70s, four Fort Worth women and a man in their 70s, an Azle woman in her 80s, two Arlington men in their 80s, a Hurst man in his 80s, a Fort Worth woman in her 80s, two Fort Worth women and a man in their 90s, and a North Richland Hills woman over the age of 100.
It is unknown whether three of the 20 had underlying health conditions. The 17 others all had underlying health conditions, according to officials.
Tarrant County has reported a total of 146,888 COVID-19 cases, including 1,468 deaths and an estimated 107,676 recoveries.
Hospitalized COVID patients in the county increased by 51 to a pandemic-high 1,374.
COVID-19 hospitalizations account for 28% of the 4,042 occupied beds in Tarrant County.
Confirmed COVID patients also are using a pandemic-high 23.6% of all available beds in the North Central Texas Trauma Region as of Tuesday. This is the rate Gov. Greg Abbott is using to determine whether Texas regions can allow businesses to open to larger capacities or permit bars to reopen. The rate would have to drop below 15% for seven consecutive days for business capacity to be increased.
A pandemic-high 87% of Tarrant County’s hospital beds were occupied as of Tuesday, according to county data. There are currently 914 available hospital beds in the county, up 146 from a pandemic low set on Tuesday.
Adult ICU bed occupancy dipped from a pandemic-high 99% capacity on Monday to 97% as of Tuesday.
A pandemic high 343 ventilators were being used as of Tuesday, an increase of 14 from the previous day. That’s 43% of the 793 ventilators available in the county. The pandemic-high rate was 46% on Dec. 14. The previous high for most ventilators concurrently in use was 336, first hit on Dec. 10.
The COVID-19 testing positivity rate for Tarrant County residents increased to 23% as of Sunday, up from 16%, in the latest available seven-day average data. The most recent high rate was 27% on Nov. 1. The positivity rate high was 30% on March 10 at the beginning of the pandemic, when fewer people were being tested.
Here are the total pandemic-related deaths in Tarrant County by city through Dec. 30:
- Fort Worth, 635
- Arlington, 253
- Mansfield, 58
Bedford, 45
Keller, 41
White Settlement, 40
Grapevine, 38
Euless, 31
Azle, 29
Benbrook, 29
Hurst, 28
North Richland Hills, 24
Rural Tarrant County, 24
Grand Prairie, 20
Haltom City, 19
Sansom Park, 17
Richland Hills, 16
Crowley, 15
Forest Hill, 13
Southlake, 11
Lake Worth, 10
Watauga, 10
Saginaw, 9
Kennedale, 6
Unknown, 5
Colleyville, 4
Westworth Village, 4
Blue Mound, 3
Edgecliff Village, 2
Everman, 2
Pantego, 2
Burleson, 1
Flower Mound, 1
Lakeside, 1
Pelican Bay, 1
- River Oaks, 1
Texas COVID-19 cases over time
Texas daily coronavirus case counts over time, and the ten counties with the most cases. Tap the arrow button to replay the animation.
Tarrant County hospital capacity
Hospital capacity by available beds and ventilators for Tarrant County. Data provided by Tarrant County Public Health.
