Three more Whatcom County coronavirus deaths reported Sunday by health department
Three more Whatcom County residents who tested positive for COVID-19, the new coronavirus, have died, according to official information released Sunday, March 29, by the Whatcom County Health Department.
That brings the total number of deaths in Whatcom County due to the coronavirus pandemic to seven, the health department reported.
Details about the new deaths, including patient ages, genders and where and when they died, has not been released by the health department.
On Saturday, Shuksan Healthcare Center reported that two residents died on Thursday and Friday night, but it is not yet clear if those two deaths were including in the health department count.
Names of the deceased have not been released.
Fourteen more Whatcom County residents have tested positive for COVID-19, the health department reported Sunday, bringing the county’s total number diagnosed with the respiratory illness to 116. The county also has had negative results returned on 613 tests.
The health department didn’t include information on the gender or age range of the new cases.
The county health department reported Whatcom’s first death from coronavirus — a man in his 60s who was a patient at St. Joseph hospital — occurred on March 19. Since then, the health department has reported:
▪ A man in his 80s died March 20 at his home after he was discharged from Shuksan Healthcare Center March 10. Test results a day later revealed he had COVID-19.
▪ A woman in her 90s who was a resident at Shuksan Healthcare Center died at the facility on March 25.
▪ A man in his 90s who was previously a resident at Summit Place Assisted Living in Bellingham died at St. Joseph hospital. His death was reported March 26.
Meanwhile, the Lummi Public Health Department in a release Sunday on Facebook confirmed the community’s 16th positive test for COVID-19 — a community member who lives on the reservation. As of Sunday, Lummi reported it has tested 137 people, 97 of which came back negative, two were indeterminate and 22 are pending. Lummi also reported nine people have recovered.
Shuksan Healthcare Center, 1530 James St., has had 33 residents — six more tested positive according to a release Sunday — and 19 employees who have been diagnosed with the respiratory illness, according to the Whatcom County Health Department and daily briefings from Shuksan. The outbreak at Shuksan was revealed last weekend.
Four residents linked to the Shuksan outbreak have died, according to the Bellingham nursing home and the Whatcom health department.
On Friday, Spring Creek by Bonaventure, a Bellingham senior living facility, confirmed that a resident tested positive for the new coronavirus, and on March 22 the health department announced that a resident at Lynden Manor has tested positive for the respiratory illness.
More than 704,000 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed worldwide, with more than 33,509 deaths as of Sunday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University. The United States has more than 132,600 confirmed cases — the most reported cases of any nation — with at least 2,351 deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Overall, the Washington State Department of Health reported 4,310 cases and 189 deaths as of Saturday afternoon.
Whatcom makes dubious list
The Bellingham metro area — or more specifically Whatcom County — ranked in the bottom 15 metro areas for confirmed COVID-19 cases per 1,000 people, according to statistics published by the New York Times Friday, March 17.
As of Thursday, Whatcom County had 86 confirmed COVID-19 cases. With an approximate population of 226,000, that is 0.38 cases per 1,000 people — 15th worst in the world.
Topping the list was Wuhan, China, where the pandemic was initially centered, with 4.59 cases per 1,000 residents (50,821 cases and a population of 11.1 million). The Lombardy region of Italy was second-worst a 3.48 cases per 1,000 residents (43,016 cases and 10 million in population), followed by New York City at 2.15 (43,016 cases and 20 million in population.)
No. 5 New Orleans (1.32 cases per 1,000), No. 6 Seattle (0.65) and No. 10 Detroit (0.57) also made the lists, as did Mount Vernon-Anacortes (Skagit County) at No. 8 with 0.61 cases per 1,000 residents (78 cases and 128,000 population). All but the top two on the list were American metro area.
The Times noted “the varying rates of testing across states and countries make it hard to compare the number of confirmed cases in different regions” and that per capita death “rates may look high in places where the virus has infiltrated nursing homes, for example, even if it has not spread widely through the rest of the community.”
This story will be updated.
BEHIND THE STORY
MOREWhat you should know about the coronavirus
COVID-19, the new coronavirus, is a disease caused by a virus named SARS-CoV-2.
The disease is spread through contact between people within six feet of each other, especially through coughing and sneezing that expels respiratory droplets that land in the mouths or noses of people nearby.
Although most of the cases have been mild, the disease is especially dangerous for the elderly and others with weaker immune systems.
Click the drop-down icon in the upper right of this card for more information on symptoms and how to stop its spread.
What you can do
Here’s what you can do to protect yourself and others from COVID-19, according to the Whatcom County Health Department.
▪ Keep six feet between yourself and others when in public.
▪ Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.
▪ Don’t touch your eyes, nose or mouth with hands that haven’t been washed.
▪ Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze, throw the tissue in the trash and then wash your hands.
▪ Stay home if you feel sick. Avoid others who are sick.
▪ If your symptoms are severe and require medical care, call your doctor first.
This story was originally published March 29, 2020 at 11:49 AM.
