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Harris County sheriff’s office reports deputy dies of COVID

The Harris County Sheriff’s Office is mourning the death of Deputy Johnny Tunches, who died Tuesday after a battle against COVID-19. (HCSO)

AUSTIN, Texas – Another Harris County sheriff's deputy has died from COVID-19, the sheriff's office said Tuesday, taking the pandemic death toll in the law enforcement agency to three.

Deputy Johnny Tunches, 56, died Tuesday after being hospitalized for nearly a month, the office said in a statement. Tunches was with the sheriff's office for 29 years.

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His death was announced a day after Texas overtook California in reporting the largest total number of positive coronavirus tests since the start of the pandemic, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. As of Monday, Texas had recorded 943,592 cumulative cases compared to California's 942,317.

The true number of infections is likely higher because many people haven’t been tested, and studies suggest people can be infected and not feel sick.

Texas, the second-most populous state in the U.S. with more than 29 million, has reported 18,542 COVID-19-related deaths to date, according to Johns Hopkins University researchers. That death toll is the second highest in the country and the 21st highest per capita at 64.6 deaths per 100,000 people.

Over the past two weeks, the rolling average of daily new cases has increased by 1,166.1, or 22.8%. There were 297.4 new cases per 100,000 people in Texas over the past two weeks, which ranks 29th in the country for new cases per capita.

There were more than 105,000 active cases in the state and more than 787,000 people have recovered, according to the Texas health department.

Coronavirus infections are surging across the U.S. In Texas, voters cast ballots in person on Tuesday. The state is one of five that did not significantly expand mail-in voting because of the virus.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and a cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.


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