We’ll be updating this story throughout the day Wednesday with the latest local news on the coronavirus. If you’d like to go through a roundup of Tuesday’s news on COVID-19, read it here. If you have a news tip or question, email us at news@KUT.org.
- Confirmed cases in Austin: 17
- What should I do if I think I have the coronavirus? If you are experiencing symptoms including fever, cough and shortness of breath, call your health care provider. Do not go to a health care facility first.
- If you are uninsured and/or don’t have a doctor: call CommUnityCare at 512-978-9015. CommUnityCare will talk to you over the phone and send you to the appropriate location.
- Q&A: Your coronavirus questions answered by a panel of experts
Update at 5:15 a.m. — Diocese of Austin suspends public Masses
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Austin announced Tuesday evening it is suspending all public Masses and liturgies.
“While I hoped we would be able to continue to celebrate public Mass, I made this decision after prayerful discernment and in light of recent recommendations from public health officials,” Bishop Joe S. Vásquez wrote in a letter.
The diocese includes 127 parishes in 25 counties in Central Texas. Priests will still offer daily and Sunday Masses privately in the parish sanctuaries, Vásquez said. The Masses will be made available on social media.
He said funerals and weddings will be celebrated privately, with only close family and friends, following city and county orders that restrict the number of people that can gather in one space. People can still visit parish churches during normal hours for private prayer. Religious education programs are instructed to follow local school district closures.
Catch up on what happened Tuesday:
Austin Closes Bars, Prohibits Dining In At Restaurants And Limits Gatherings In Response To COVID-19
Austin Mayor Steve Adler ordered bars to close and restaurants to shut down dine-in service and banned gatherings of more than 10 people in the city. The changes, which went into effect at noon on Tuesday and last until May 11, aim to slow the spread of COVID-19.
“Collectively and individually we get to decide as a community what kind of spike we’re going to have as this virus begins to enter the general population,” Adler said during a news conference when the closures were announced.
Critical infrastructure — grocery stores, pharmacies, essential government buildings, schools and hospitals — are exempt from the order.
The city reported seven more cases of the disease Tuesday evening, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 17 in Austin-Travis County. The city says on its website that while it has not yet confirmed that Austin-Travis County has sustained person-to-person spread of the disease in the community, it should act as if it has.
The number of confirmed cases has been expected to rise as testing ramps up.
_
Credit: Source link
