Texas requests 5 FEMA morgue trailers in anticipation of COVID-19 fatality surge


Texas has requested five mortuary trailers from the Federal Emergency Management Agency in anticipation of a spike in COVID-19 deaths as the Delta variant continues to take its toll, Texas Department of State Health Services spokesman Doug Loveday tells NBC News. He said the request was put in Aug. 4, because "we are anticipating a need within the state of Texas for these trailers as COVID cases and hospitalizations continue to increase."
The five morge trailers will be based in San Antonio and moved to other cities as needed, and the health services department said they were requested as a precautionary measure. San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg was not aware of the state's request, but it "makes sense," spokesman Bruce Davidson said. "Deaths are starting to mount for sure." Texas is averaging 80 COVID-19 deaths a day, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.
Neighboring Louisiana is one of four states that have hit pandemic-high COVID-19 infections, along with Oregon, Hawaii, Florida, and Mississippi, CNBC reports. Louisiana had a nation-high per capital infection rate of 126 cases per 100,000 residents, followed closely by Florida and Mississippi, and "about 1 of every 1,600 Louisiana residents is currently in a hospital bed with COVID, and more are arriving each day," The Advocate reports.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"We are rapidly getting to the point where we could have a major failure of our health care delivery system," Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) said Friday. "There's some people out there whose care is being delayed to the point where, for them, it's already failed."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
5 heavy-handed cartoons about ICE and deportation
Cartoons Artists take on international students, the Supreme Court, and more
By The Week US
-
Exploring the three great gardens of Japan
The Week Recommends Beautiful gardens are 'the stuff of Japanese landscape legends'
By The Week UK
-
Is Prince Harry owed protection?
Talking Point The Duke of Sussex claims he has been singled out for 'unjustified and inferior treatment' over decision to withdraw round-the-clock security
By The Week UK
-
RFK Jr. visits Texas as 2nd child dies from measles
Speed Read An outbreak of the vaccine-preventable disease continues to grow following a decade of no recorded US measles deaths
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Shingles vaccine cuts dementia risk, study finds
Speed Read Getting vaccinated appears to significantly reduce the chances of developing Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Measles outbreak spreads, as does RFK Jr.'s influence
Speed Read The outbreak centered in Texas has grown to at least three states and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is promoting unproven treatments
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
RFK Jr. offers alternative remedies as measles spreads
Speed Read Health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. makes unsupported claims about containing the spread as vaccine skepticism grows
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Texas outbreak brings 1st US measles death since 2015
Speed read The outbreak is concentrated in a 'close-knit, undervaccinated' Mennonite community in rural Gaines County
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Mystery illness spreading in Congo rapidly kills dozens
Speed Read The World Health Organization said 53 people have died in an outbreak that originated in a village where three children ate a bat carcass
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Ozempic can curb alcohol cravings, study finds
Speed read Weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy may also be helpful in limiting alcohol consumption
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
New form of H5N1 bird flu found in US dairy cows
Speed Read This new form of bird flu is different from the version that spread through herds in the last year
By Peter Weber, The Week US