HOUSTON – More officers with the Houston Police Department will begin wearing masks and gloves while on duty, Assistant Chief Larry Satterwhite said in a press conference Saturday.
"You're going to see some different things as officers arrive on scenes because we want to make sure that they're safe. So you're gonna start seeing more and more officers wearing a face mask," Satterwhite said. "It may be an odd thing to see, a police officer show up in the field with an N95 mask and gloves on but remember, they're protecting themselves but they're also there to protect you."
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The news came as Mayor Sylvester Turner announced 163 additional positive cases of COVID-19 in Houston, representing the city’s biggest 1-day uptick in confirmed positive cases since the pandemic began.
Later Saturday, HPD Chief Art Acevedo reported three new officers tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the department’s total to 10.
He said one officer remains hospitalized while 220 employees total are currently in quarantine.
As of now here is the latest COVID-19 data on @houstonpolice:
— Chief Art Acevedo (@ArtAcevedo) March 29, 2020
We have a total of 10 officers positive for COVID1-19, of which 1 remains hospitalized.
Quarantine: 220 total
Sworn – 194
Civilian– 26
Tested (Total): 71
Sworn – 70 (10-Pos/
16-Negative/44-Pend)
Civilian – 1