eddie treviño jr.

BROWNSVILLE, Texas - SpaceX is becoming a good corporate citizen of the Rio Grande Valley.

That is the view of Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño, Jr.

By way of example, Treviño pointed to the help SpaceX provided when 3,000 endangered Kemp’s Ridley sea turtles were saved during the Big Freeze in February 2021. Another example, he said, was when the City of Los Indios lost power and SpaceX sent a generator.

“They are becoming, I think, a good member of the community. A lot of that stuff doesn’t get advertised or well-known because the focus, obviously, is on their business operations. But, I think they are committed to being a good corporate citizen,” Treviño said.

In response, Helen Ramirez, the City of Brownsville’s interim city manager and the Greater Brownsville Incentives Corporation’s executive director, pointed out that the Musk Foundation donated $20 million to Cameron County schools and $10 million to revitalization plans for downtown Brownsville.

Ramirez and Treviño spoke about SpaceX at a recent conference co-hosted by GBIC and SelectUSA. Their discussion took the form of a Q&A, with Ramirez pitching questions to Treviño.

One of the questions posed was: Why did SpaceX choose Brownsville? Another was: What impact has SpaceX had on the Cameron County economy?

Ramirez also asked Treviño about the environmental safeguards SpaceX has had to put in place at Boca Chica, and the role of the Spaceport Development Corporation. 

The conference was titled: “The Future of Aerospace, Defense & Energy.” It was held at the Brownsville Events Center. Select USA is a division of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

To read the new stories and watch the news videos of the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service go to www.riograndeguardian.com.

BROWNSVILLE, Texas - Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño, Jr., held a press conference on Friday with the heads of four local hospitals to speak about the “dire” situation surrounding the county’s exponential uptick in COVID-19 cases. 

Manny Vela, president and CEO of Valley Baptist Health System; Art Garza, CEO of Valley Regional Medical Center; Matt Wolthoff, CEO of Harlingen Medical Center; and Leslie Bingham, senior vice president and hospital CEO of Valley Baptist Health System, all joined Cameron County Health Authority Dr. James Castillo to discuss their concerns. 

Like Pharr Mayor Dr. Ambrosio Hernandez, the leaders says their biggest fear is not having enough health care workers to treat the influx of COVID-19 patients. 

“Our hospitals expand and contract based on the demand that we are experiencing,” said Garza.  “And, at the moment, our hospitals are expanding. And, I’m very concerned that if our rates continue the way they are, then we will find ourselves in situations like we saw on the news – cities like New York and other hotspots. And, unfortunately – I hate to say this, and this is simply my opinion – I don’t think we’re far from that.”

Treviño said he holds the news conferences to keep local residents on the latest developments on the coronavirus.

“We are doing this to inform you. We want to inform the public so they understand the demands and the current existing conditions at the hospitals. We need your help in order to make sure that things don’t get worse, going forward,” Treviño said.

“That is why we are asking all of you to do your part because the hospitals need to be able to have the resources and the staffing to save lives and if we are overrun it is going to multiply the problems we are going to be facing.”

For the full story by reporter Patricia Martinez go to www.riograndeguardian.com.

To read the new stories and watch the news videos of the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service go to www.riograndeguardian.com.

BROWNSVILLE, Texas - A top doctor in Cameron County’s public health department says if the current spike in COVID-19 cases continues there will not be enough hospital beds for infected patients.

Dr. James Castillo gave the warning at a news conference held Wednesday with Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño, Jr.

“Hospitalizations are going up. If that trend continues on that path, a lot of patients who get hospitalized, especially in the ICU, they could be there for a month. For weeks, not a few days. If this trend continues, hospital capacity will start approaching its limits.”

If Cameron County starts seeing that, he said, officials will have to start thinking about restricting the movement of residents again.

On the day of the news conference, Cameron County has received confirmation of two additional COVID-19 related deaths. The individuals were 65 and 67-year-old males from Brownsville.  This raised the number of COVID-19 related deaths in Cameron County to 42. The county also received confirmation of an additional 39 case reports of COVID-19. A few weeks ago, before the economy was re-opened, Cameron County was reporting only ten or so additional cases per day. 

On Thursday, more alarming figures were released by Cameron County. There were two more COVID-19 related deaths. The individuals were a 100-year old female and 59-year-old male from Brownsville. This raised the number of COVID-19 related deaths in Cameron County to 44. Cameron County also received confirmation of an additional 41 case reports of COVID-19.

In his remarks, Judge Treviño said: “As the state began to open up I reiterated the fact that even though it is no longer mandatory to wear a mask or a facial covering, we were requesting or recommending that people still do that. Some people have continued to still do that and I thank you. Those who are not following we reiterate it. You are putting yourself, your family and others at risk.”

The attached podcast features highlights from the news conference, which was held at Cameron County Courthouse. 

To read the new stories and watch the news videos of the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service go to www.riograndeguardian.com.