Coronavirus in Fort Bliss: Two more soldiers test positive for COVID-19 at Army post

Two more soldiers tested positive for the novel coronavirus Saturday in Fort Bliss, a spokesman for the U.S. Army post said.

The two soldiers were roommates of the soldier who tested positive Friday for the new coronavirus known as COVID-19, Fort Bliss reported late Saturday night.

There are now three confirmed COVID-19 cases at Fort Bliss plus six others in El Paso.

The soldiers are Army reservists with the 77th Human Resources Company out of New York City, which recently reported to Fort Bliss for training, a spokesman said in an email.

On Friday, a New York reservist with the unit tested positive Friday for COVID-19 at William Beaumont Army Medical Center in Fort Bliss.

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"As a precautionary measure, the remainder of the Army Reserve unit was placed into quarantine to prevent further potential spread of the virus," Gilbert Telles, a Fort Bliss garrison spokesman said in an email.

Two of the soldier's roommates then tested positive on Saturday, the Army post stated. All three soldiers are in isolation at Fort Bliss.

In addition to the three cases at Fort Bliss, there have been six other positive COVID-19 cases in El Paso, the city's Public Health Department reported.

The El Paso laboratory also tested and found an additional positive case for a person living in New Mexico.

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The Texas Department of State Health Services earlier on Saturday had reported eight cases for El Paso County — six in El Paso, Friday's Fort Bliss case and one from New Mexico and not counting the two newest cases out of Fort Bliss.

The public health lab has run about 96 coronavirus tests as of Friday, including some from outside of El Paso County, according to a city news release Saturday.

Daniel Borunda may be reached at 915-546-6102; dborunda@elpasotimes.com; @BorundaDaniel on Twitter.

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