SAN MARCOS, Texas — As cases and hospitalizations surge across Texas, Hays County is quickly recovering from a recent spike.
It was just a few weeks ago that Hays County leaders sounded the alarm after more than 25 businesses across the country came forward with positive cases among workers.
Now, in mid-July, things are looking much better, and county leaders say the reason is an increase in testing sites.
"We started in the far west part of the county, and we had an opportunity to start there and then we saw a hot spot in the corridor, so we doubled down, we got tremendous help from the Texas Division of Emergency Management and the National Guard," said Hays County Judge Ruben Becerra.
When cases spiked more than 700% in a 10-day span in mid-June, within a week Hays County had increased testing more than 200% in a 10-day span. While cases have started to trail off, testing remains high.
"Testing is important for us to understand the penetration of the virus within our communities," said Alex Villalobos, Hays County Emergency Management coordinator.
Free testing was available at San Marcos High School on Thursday, among those getting swabbed were children. Here's why one young student says he was at the site:
"So I don't get other kids sick," said Jeremiah Medina
Click here for the current case count, broken down by county for Central Texas. Click here for updated information on Hays County COVID-19 data.
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