DETAILS: Increase in Covid Infections Among School-aged Children Prompt Mask Order

SAN ANGELO, TX –– In an unexpected move on Tuesday evening, county officials announced a property control order over school facilities in Tom Green County that would require all students and staff to wear a mask once someone tests positive for Covid-19.

According to the Texas Health and Safety Code, a local health authority may implement a property control order if they have "reasonable cause to believe that property in its jurisdiction is or may be infected or contaminated with a communicable disease."

In Section 81.084(k) of the code, local health authorities are granted the right to "impose additional control measures...to arrest, control, and eradicate the threat to the public health."

Within the last week, all six schools districts located inside Tom Green County have kicked off the 2021-2022 school district. Of those six, only San Angelo ISD regularly publishes reports detailing the number of students and staff members that test positive for the coronavirus.

Christoval, Grape Creek, Veribest, Wall, and Water Valley school districts do not have any information regarding infections on their official websites.

An analysis of the daily coronavirus reports released by the San Angelo Health Department in the last week showed 899 new cases were confirmed by local testing locations.

Of those 899, a total of 122 were school-age children between 5 and 17 tested positive for the virus, or 13.57 percent of the new cases. This data only includes children who were identified as residents of Tom Green County.

The property control order will go into effect Thursday, August 26, and continue through the end of the school day on Friday, October 15, or until the Texas Education Agency (TEA) or a court of competent jurisdiction reinstitutes enforcement against school districts with masks mandates.