CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — It doesn't get talked about as much as it used to, but the COVID-19 pandemic is not over.
Positive cases are reported every day — 31 in Nueces County on Wednesday.
That daily tally brought the county past a milestone.
There have now been more than 100,000 positive cases since the pandemic began more than two years ago.
“Anytime you have a hundred thousand illnesses, that’s scary," Corpus Christi resident Norval Welsh said.
At the Corpus Christi-Nueces County Public Health District — now operated solely by the city — the milestone was met with calm resignation.
“Unfortunately, you know, we are there," Interim Assistant Health Director Dr. Kim Onufrak said.
She says the county has seen a slight uptick in cases from last week to this week because of yet another new COVID-19 subvariant.
No matter what the total number of cases is, Onufrak says the health departmentcontinues to test for the coronavirus and vaccinate people against it.
“We don’t know what’s coming," she said. "And the purpose of the vaccination is to help you from getting worse — getting hospitalized — from dying from COVID.”
Of the 100,024 cases, 10,451 required hospitalization, and 1,494 resulted in deaths.
One man who has recovered from COVID-19 and who described Wednesday's milestone in cases as "serious" would consider taking precautions again if numbers start rising significantly.
“I think about it all the time, and I actually think about wearing masks in the stores — in the restaurants," Corpus Christi resident Bob Catalano said.
Welsh and his family never caught the coronavirus.
But as the total number of cases in Nueces County climbs past 100,000, they too, would consider taking more precautions.
"Generally we’re pretty careful," Welsh said. "I think to say the pandemic is behind us or that there’s nothing to worry about is probably putting the cart before the horse a little bit."
