Photos of a state in crisis: Deserted highways, swamped food banks and health care workers at risk

When we first reported on the new coronavirus in January, the official worldwide death tally was still relatively low and the virus was mostly confined overseas. Since then, the epidemic has exploded into a pandemic, and people in the U.S. have died by the hundreds, then thousands, then tens of thousands. Here in Texas, to slow its spread, millions stayed home. Once-vibrant city streets were deserted. Freeways in our largest cities, once packed with cars at all hours, were emptied of traffic. Smaller cities were no different.

The toll on our lives and our once-thriving economy has been extraordinary. Businesses large and small have shuttered — many for good. Millions of people have lost their jobs as the unemployment rate shot from historic lows to levels not seen since the Great Depression. At The Texas Tribune, our comprehensive coverage of the pandemic stays focused on the people who are affected — those who have become ill, their loved ones and the people who care for them. Behind every new report on the economy are Texans struggling to make ends meet, educate their children or continue working in the face of so many terrifying unknowns.

To help tell those stories, our photographers have ventured all over the state, with sensitivity and care for the safety of their fellow Texans — and themselves, too. Here are some of some of their images.