Rocio Villalobos 
EDINBURG – “This action is taken not for the benefit of the government but for the benefit of our people, so we ask for your support. “
As the coronavirus continues to spread throughout the U.S., Hidalgo County Judge Richard Cortez announced a disaster declaration for the county prohibiting gatherings of 50 or more.
“The signing of this declaration puts all our citizens on notice that it is serious and we want to take every precaution possible,” said Cortez.
Across the valley, events have been canceled in accordance with the social distancing encouraged by Centers for Disease Control, but the Rio Grande Valley Livestock Show — which ranks as one of the top 10 livestock shows in the state — was set to continue, as usual, assuring it was taking proactive safety measures.
The disaster declaration came two days into the 10-day event.
La Joya High School Future Farmers of America President Kaylee Silva, who was set to show an animal for her fourth and final year of high school says the news devastated her.
“So we had already finished setting up,” she said. “Steers were weighing in. Hogs were weighing in. Then we were told that we had to leave by that day that we had to tear everything by that day.”
Despite her disappointment, Silva holds no grudge against the show and says she appreciated them fighting to keep it going.
Livestock show officials declined to be interviewed about how this decision by the county might affect future shows.
Since the signing, several other valley cities have written disaster declarations of their own, including McAllen, Pharr, and Edinburg.
The 7-day declaration has been extended and Judge Cortez is enacting a county-wide curfew from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., which will take effect tonight.
“This isolates us by the actions that we take to mitigate any future spreading of this horrible disease,” he said.
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