AUSTIN, Texas — Editor's note: This blog is no longer being updated. Click here for Saturday's blog.
KVUE is keeping you updated with the latest coronavirus and COVID-19 news in the Austin area.
Scroll down for the top headlines and latest updates in KVUE's Jan. 15 live blog.
COVID-19 numbers:
- Texas: More than 1.7 million cases have been reported in the state, and more than 30,200 people in Texas have died, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services.
- Central Texas counties:
- Travis County: At least 60,084 cases have been reported and at least 592 people have died. At least 52,810 people have recovered from the virus.
- Hays County: At least 12,948 confirmed cases have been reported and at least 154 people have died. At least 10,434 people have recovered from the virus.
- Williamson County: At least 24,908 cases have been reported in the county and at least 237 people have died. At least 22,716 people have recovered from the virus.
For a look at COVID-19 data across all of the state's counties, click here.
GRAPHS: Coronavirus data for Jan. 15
Updates:
6:15 p.m. – The daily hospital admissions average for the Austin metro area is at 87.8 per day over the past week. There have been 1,313 deaths from COVID-19 in the 12-county KVUE viewing area since the pandemic began.
Texas has now administered 6% of the COVID-19 vaccine doses it has received – 152,547 Texans are fully vaccinated, while 806,872 Texans have received one dose.
6:05 p.m. – Travis County reported another death from COVID-19 on Friday along with 690 new confirmed cases, bringing the total to 60,084 cases and 592 deaths since the start of the pandemic. At least 52,810 people have recovered from the virus.
Travis County currently has 608 people hospitalized with COVID-19, with 189 in the ICU and 107 on ventilators.
4:40 p.m. – A spokesperson confirms that Gov. Greg Abbott will not be attending President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration ceremony, citing the pandemic.
4:25 p.m. – One more youth at the Giddings State School has tested positive. Two employees who were marked as "indeterminate positives" have been cleared to return to work.
3:55 p.m. – Hays County reported six more deaths from COVID-19 on Friday – three San Marcos women in their 80s, one San Marcos man in his 30s, one Kyle woman in her 30s and one Dripping Springs man in his 80s.
The county also reports 139 new confirmed cases along with nine new hospitalizations and eight new hospital discharges. There are 105 additional people considered recovered from the virus.
3:50 p.m. – According to Austin Public Health more than 93,000 people have registered to get the COVID-19 vaccine with the department.
3:10 p.m. – According to a joint statement from Ascension Seton, Baylor Scott & White Health and St. David’s HealthCare, currently, the 2,473 staffed beds within all three healthcare systems are 74% occupied, and the 483 ICU beds are 88% occupied.
11:15 a.m. – The Texas Tribune confirms that State Rep. Joe Deshotel, D-Beaumont, has tested positive, forcing other state lawmakers into quarantine.
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