DENTON COUNTY (1080 KLRD) - Health officials in Denton County say for the first time, COVID-19 patients are taking up more than half of the county’s occupied ICU beds.
Denton County Health Director Dr. Matt Richardson spoke about the county's dire COVID-19 situation today during the Commissioner's Court meeting.
"We are very definitely in the second wave ... or in the surge, or the spike or whatever euphemistic term you'd like to use," Richardson said. "We're definitely in the experience of COVID-19 transmission in the county that far exceeds what it was in the summer."
Dr. Richardson says COVID-19 cases are up across the board, but transmission is especially high among students and teachers. The number of cases involving kids has almost doubled since the first week of November.
"This is just what you would expect in COVID-19 transmission across the county," he said. "This is part of the spike. This is part of the surge. This is part of the second wave."
Currently, hospital adult ICU occupancy is at nearly 80 percent in Denton County. More than half of those beds are occupied by COVID-19 patients. There are only 16 adult ICU beds available at this time.