Andy MackLongview mayor

Gregg County recorded its first cases of COVID-19 stemming from senior living facilities Wednesday as a Panola County nursing home reported another 20 confirmed cases.

Gregg County Health Administrator A.J. Harris said Wednesday that 10 new COVID-19 cases were recorded, bringing the county’s total to 84. Gregg County Judge Bill Stoudt said later that those 10 include six linked to Highland Pines Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Longview and two other cases tied to assisted living facilities that were not identified. 

“Today was not a good day for Longview,” Mayor Andy Mack said in a statement. “I had hoped we had reached our peak already, but we had nine confirmed positives today and zero new recoveries. I pray all the days going forward will be better.

“We are far from being through this … We all realize that with more testing will come more positives. And as more things open, we will have more positives.”

Harris said it was unclear if the six cases at Highland Pines represent residents, staff or a mixture of both. 

Highland Pines Administrator Matt Mewborn did not return phone messages Wednesday requesting comment.

Harris said his office is awaiting more lab results on the cases and will trace relatives of the infected people as well as their family members and others with whom they were in recent contact.

The nursing home has been closed off to visitors, so there could possibly be a Highland Pines employee or a home health care nurse or physical therapist from another company who might have COVID-19 but isn’t showing symptoms, Harris said.

“Or maybe it’s one of the mobile X-ray tech people. Any one of those people can be asymptomatic and come in there and spread that virus and not know it,” he said. “They do temperature checks and all that, and with asymptomatic people, they don’t have the symptoms or anything so they don’t know that they’re sick.”

Elsewhere

Panola County Judge LeeAnn Jones reported 24 additional COVID-19 cases for a total of 164. Seven people have died in Panola County, while 10 patients have recovered.

Twenty of those new cases are connected to Briarcliff Skilled Nursing Center in Carthage. The facility has reported a total of 50 coronavirus cases, 44 involving residents.

Panola Nursing and Rehabilitation in Carthage has reported nine cases linked to its facility.

Jones said she is waiting on test results from the COVID-19 mobile testing that was set up Friday in Carthage. About 70 tests were performed, she said.

Harrison County was notified of seven new positive COVID-19 cases Wednesday, bringing the total there to 95 along with seven deaths.

“We also had five recoveries reported bringing total recovered cases to 13,” Harrison County Judge Chad Sims said during his daily update.

In Smith County, the death of a 68-year-old Tyler man was the county’s fourth related to the coronavirus.

Smith County also added three confirmed cases Wednesday, raising its total to 142, according to the Northeast Texas Public Health District.

The district also reported 85 recovered patients in the county.

Upshur County Judge Todd Tefteller reported one new case for a total of 14. He said the patient is a woman, 40 to 50 years old, who lives in Gilmer. He said eight of the county’s confirmed 14 cases are patients who have recovered from the coronavirus.

A mobile testing site was set up Wednesday in Gilmer, and Tefteller said he believes the county’s numbers could increase after results are returned.

And Rusk County also reported a single new case — a person who lives in the Mount Enterprise area — for a total of 37.

The county’s Office of Emergency Management said in a statement that the county has tentatively been notified of positive cases resulting from a mobile testing Saturday but is waiting on formal notification.

Morris County Judge Doug Reeder said in a statement that two of the five people diagnosed with COVID-19 in his county have recovered.

He also said 75 people were tested Monday at a mobile testing site in Daingerfield, and the county should have results as soon as today and as late as next Monday.

Food distribution

The East Texas Food Bank has scheduled a drive-thru emergency food box distribution today in Longview.

Boxes with enough shelf-stable groceries for 16 meals will be available 10 a.m. to noon, or until supplies run out, at Maude Cobb Convention and Activity Complex, 100 Grand Blvd., according to the organization.

The food bank, along Texas Army National Guardsmen and local volunteers, will distribute 1,500 boxes of food. 

To receive a box, residents need to provide their name and address. There are no other eligibility requirements, according to the agency. Multiple households may ride together. Each adult in the car will need to provide a name and address for the household. If picking up a box for someone not in the car, someone in the car will need to provide a written note with a name at the household and their signature.

The boxes will not be distributed to people on foot, and officials ask everyone to remain inside vehicles.

Drivers should enter from Cotton Street onto Grand Boulevard and then follow the route and traffic control provided by Longview police.

The total of reported cases of COVID-19 by Wednesday evening in Northeast Texas was at least 1,140, up from 1,075 a day earlier. Across the region, 38 deaths had been reported. Here’s a look at totals by county Wednesday and changes from Tuesday:

Anderson: 29 (+3)

Angelina: 49 (+3)

Bowie: 94, 8 deaths

Camp: 6

Cass: 16

Cherokee: 14, 1 death

Delta: 1

Franklin: 1

Gregg: 84 (+10)

Harrison: 95 (+7), 7 deaths

Henderson: 25

Hopkins: 4

Lamar: 57, 1 death (+1)

Marion: 13 (+4)

Morris: 5

Nacogdoches: 148 (+7), 8 deaths (+1)

Panola: 164 (+24), 6 deaths

Red River: 1

Rusk: 37 (+1), 1 death

Shelby: 103 

Smith: 142 (+3), 4 deaths (+1)

Titus: 16 (+1) 

Upshur: 14 (+1)

Van Zandt: 14, 1 death

Wood: 8 (+1)

Totals: 1,140, 38 deaths

Sources: Texas Department of State Health Services, Northeast Texas Public Health District, local officials