By Mitch Borden
A 91-year-old man from the City of Presidio has died from the coronavirus while receiving treatment at Medical Center Hospital in Odessa.
Hospital officials announced the death Friday afternoon saying the Big Bend resident died this morning due to complications with the coronavirus. This is the first coronavirus related death of a Presidio County resident officially announced — which County Judge Cinderela Guevara confirmed — and the third person in the Big Bend to die as a result of the pandemic.
So far, the Tri-County area has confirmed 229 cases of the coronavirus since April — 41 of those from Presidio County. Prior to this announcement, Brewster County was the only area in the Big Bend to record any coronavirus related deaths.
Big Bend Regional Medical Center, the region’s only hospital, has sent many of their coronavirus patients to Odessa for treatment at Medical Center Hospital, the largest hospital in Odessa. All three COVID-19 Big Bend patients who have died were receiving care at the Permian Basin facility.
Officials with Medical Center Hospital said in a press release that the 91-year-old patient’s family had been informed of their death. Currently, the hospital has two Big Bend region residents who are receiving care for the coronavirus.
