Whatcom surges with 39 COVID-19 cases and a death, as demand for testing increases
Another Whatcom County resident’s death has been linked to COVID-19, and 39 new cases were reported Thursday, Nov. 12, by the Washington State Department of Health. The new data represents two days, after data was not reported Wednesday in observance of Veterans Day.
Whatcom County now has seen 1,776 confirmed cases and 53 related deaths during the pandemic, according to state data as of 11:59 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 11. That means that 3.0% of the Whatcom residents who have tested positive for COVID during the pandemic have died.
No additional information about the death that was reported Thursday was released, but it was the second that has been reported in three days and the third so far in November.
Thursday marked the ninth day the county has seen a double-digit increase in new cases in the past two weeks.
Whatcom County has averaged 15.1 new cases per day over the past week. That is the county’s fourth-highest weekly average during the pandemic, behind only June 25-27, when the county averaged 15.3, 16.3 and 16.1, respectively.
In response to the high numbers and in alignment with the state Department of Health, Whatcom County Health Department Director Erika Lautenbach is calling for action, according to a county health department release.
“This surge is serious,” Lautenbach said in the release. “It is concerning not just to those who are sick or have been exposed, our entire community is at a stress point.”
Lautenbach advises all residents wear masks when around others and limit social gatherings, including small ones inside the home. Not doing so, she warned, would strain not only the community, but Whatcom County’s isolation and quarantine facility and its lone hospital and the ability of the public health staff to manage the response.
“It is vital to slowing the spread of this coronavirus before it overwhelms our community,” Lautenbach said in the release. “We can’t afford to go back to businesses being closed, people being laid off and permanent closures.”
The county health department staff contacts every person confirmed to have tested positive for COVID-19 and those that they have been in contact with as part of the case and contact investigations. According to the release, those interviews are showing:
▪ Local cases are increasing “dramatically.”
▪ Social gatherings or interactions in households are a large part of the recent surge.
▪ One-third of the Whatcom County residents infected in October were exposed while they were outside the county.
▪ The surge is having a “significant impact” on the county’s workers, businesses and organizations.
“Now is not the time to let up,” Lautenbach told the Whatcom County Council at its meeting Tuesday, Nov. 10.
She added during the meeting that the health department thought there might be a spike after Halloween. The department hoped what it was seeing was a “short-term spike rather than a trend,” Lautenbach said, but there were some things that were making health officials “nervous.”
Other Whatcom numbers
The state Department of Health data Thursday shows Whatcom County has had 117 hospitalizations (an increase of one from Tuesday) and 88,850 tests have been performed (an increase of 1,764 from what was reported Tuesday).
St. Joseph hospital in Bellingham reported to The Bellingham Herald on Thursday that it was treating three patients for COVID-19, a decrease of two from Wednesday.
The Lummi Tribal Health Center on Wednesday evening reported three new COVID cases, bringing the number of Lummi community members infected during the pandemic to 90. The Lummi community now has 12 cases so far in November and 26 since Oct. 1. As of Monday, the Lummi health center reported it has performed 2,381 tests during the pandemic and the community had three hospitalizations and no deaths.
“As we take the time out today to recognize our Veterans, we too must continue to keep in the forefront the health and safety of each other, our families and our entire community,” a Lummi Communications Facebook post read. “Please follow all safety protocols and safety measures, stay safe, mask up, social distance and shelter in place.”
Western Washington University’s most recent on-campus student COVID testing data shows that, since Sept. 15, WWU has tested 7,957 students, eight of whom had positive tests — an increase of two from Wednesday.
The state’s Risk Assessment Dashboard reported Thursday for data as of 11:59 p.m. Wednesday showed that Whatcom County is making two of four key metrics goals.
▪ Whatcom is missing the target rate of fewer than 25 new cases per 100,000 residents every 14 days with a rate of 48.4.
▪ Whatcom had an average COVID-19 testing rate per 100,000 people over a week of 262.6. No goal was stated for this metric, however, the overall statewide number was 244.9.
▪ Whatcom is making the target of less than 2% of individuals testing positive for COVID-19 during the past week with a rate of 1.3%.
▪ Whatcom is missing the target of less than 80% of all licensed hospital beds occupied by patients with 92.5% reported by the state.
▪ Whatcom is making the target of less than 10% of all licensed hospital beds being occupied by COVID-19 patients with 1.2% reported by the state.
Testing demand increasing
The surge in new cases of COVID-19 has meant greater demand for testing.
In Skagit County, the drive-thru testing site in Mount Vernon has been reporting long waits and long lines. The Skagit County Health Department operates the site.
The wait was as much as three hours on Thursday, Nov. 12, Skagit County officials tweeted.
On Tuesday, Nov. 10, the wait to get tested in Skagit was 1.5 hours.
“As cases continue to increase, it’s likely so will utilization of the testing site. If you’re coming to the test site, leave yourself extra time,” Skagit County officials said in their tweet on Thursday.
There aren’t long lines for testing in Whatcom County because people using the drive-thru testing sites operated by the Whatcom County Health Department reserve a time. But testing demand also is up here.
“In Whatcom County, members of the community schedule their COVID tests using testdirectly.com or our call line. While we have not seen long lines at our testing locations, we are seeing an increase in the demand for testing,” Amy Cloud, spokesperson for Whatcom Unified Command said to The Bellingham Herald in an email.
“Schedules on Saturdays and Mondays in Bellingham are close to full. The number of people seeking testing are climbing in Ferndale and Blaine on Tuesdays as well,” Cloud said.
To schedule a test by phone, call 360-778-6075.
— Kie Relyea, krelyea@bhamherald.com
Numbers elsewhere
COVID-19 cases and deaths according to Johns Hopkins University Thursday afternoon:
▪ The U.S. has more than 10.5 million reported cases, the most of any nation, and 242,577 deaths.
▪ Worldwide, there are more than 52.5 million reported cases and 1.29 million deaths.
In Washington state, the most recent numbers from the Department of Health were reported Thursday afternoon:
▪ 123,356 reported cases, an increase of 3,345 from data on Tuesday.
▪ 9,178 coronavirus-related hospitalizations, an increase of 80 from data Tuesday.
▪ 2,694,170 total tests, an increase of 49,745 from data Tuesday.
▪ 2,507 deaths related to COVID-19, 25 more than were reported Tuesday, meaning that 2.0% of the state residents who have tested positive for COVID during the pandemic have died.
Phased reopening
Gov. Inslee on Tuesday, Oct. 13, moved all counties in modified Phase 1 to Phase 2, but his July 28 extension of an indefinite pause on counties moving ahead in the Safe Start Washington plan remains in place. That came a week after Inslee loosened some restrictions for activities and businesses.
That means 22 counties — including Whatcom — are in Phase 2 and 17 counties are in Phase 3.
This story was originally published November 12, 2020 at 4:52 PM.
