'Stay healthy': COVID-19 infection rates increase among Houston city staff

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner has recently reported an increase in the number of city employees infected with COVID-19.

"The number of municipal employees with COVID continues to increase: Municipal 135; Police 93; Firefighters 44," Turner wrote on Twitter.

Mary Benton, director of communications for the mayor's office, also addressed the surge in infected city staff and encouraged individuals to continue wearing masks to avoid the spread of the virus.

"City workers are essential employees who provide valuable services to the public," Benton stated on Twitter. "As COVID19 numbers increase, it’s difficult to understand why some do not want to mask up! Stay healthy, protect your family and coworkers!"

Turner's announcement comes almost two weeks after he issued a mask requirement for municipal employees on Aug. 2 in response to an increase in positive COVID-19 cases at the time.

However, his order may contradict with Gov. Greg Abbott's executive order issued in May prohibiting any state, county or municipal government body from imposing mask requirements. Local governments that attempt to impose mask mandates face a fine of up to $1,000, according to CBS.

"It is so very important that we remain vigilant in doing our part to reduce the spread of COVID-19," Turner wrote in a memo to all city employees.

Dr. George Williams, an associate professor at UT Health McGovern Medical School who is currently treating COVID-19 patients in a local hospital's critical care unit, told ABC13 that working in Houston's ICUs is "almost like experiencing a conflict or a war zone."

Williams also urged individuals to get the COVID-19 vaccinations, stating that if people saw the pandemic's consequences up close, they would receive vaccines.