5,489 New COVID-19 Cases: Texas Reports All-Time Daily High

"Today, Texas will report an all-time high in the number of cases of people testing positive" for the coronavirus, Gov. Greg Abbott said Tuesday, adding that for the first time, his state would surpass 5,000 new cases in a single day.
Hours later, the Texas Department of State Health Services reported 5,489 new cases.
Abbott initially revealed the daunting new record during an interview with TV station KBTX in which he urged people to take the deadly disease seriously, telling them to wear a mask in public, stay home when possible and take other precautions.
"The hospitalization rate is at an all-time high," he said. "The coronavirus is serious. It's spreading in Brazos County, across the entire state of Texas."
Texas is seeing a sharp rise in cases; it was just days ago that the state crossed the 4,000-case mark for the first time in its daily tally.
New cases have hit the Houston area so hard that the Texas Children's Hospital is now admitting adult patients. The move comes despite the fact that Houston is home to the massive Texas Medical Center — deemed the largest medical center in the world.