Lighthouse Mission reports first known COVID case at homeless center as testing offered
The Lighthouse Mission’s Base Camp homeless services center announced Tuesday, Dec. 1, that it has seen its first confirmed COVID-19 case during the pandemic after a person staying at the facility who had been at the tent camp outside Bellingham City Hall tested positive.
In response, the Whatcom County Health Department is offering on-site, low-barrier testing to guests and campers at both the tent camp and Base Camp, Whatcom Unified Command spokesperson Amy Cloud told The Bellingham Herald in an email Tuesday, Dec. 1.
The testing is “out of an abundance of caution” and because people staying at the tent camp and Base Camp are living in congregate living settings, Cloud reported.
“The safety of the men and women we serve is our top priority,” Executive Director Hans Erchinger-Davis said in a Lighthouse Mission news release.
The health department was notified of the positive test result on Sunday, Nov. 29, Cloud reported.
It is believed the person contracted COVID while staying at the tent camp, where the individual had previously been staying, according to the Lighthouse Mission release.
People who had contact with the individual between Nov. 24 and Nov. 28 may have been exposed, according to Cloud, and people who are known to have been in close contact with the person have been moved to the county’s isolation and quarantine facility to prevent possible spread to others.
“COVID-19 has been spreading rapidly throughout the community; there is concern for any congregate living setting where transmission could occur,” Cloud wrote. “It is why we have provided masks, established an isolation and quarantine facility at Byron Avenue, and why we are testing.”
Once it was notified of the positive test on Saturday, the Lighthouse Mission reports it implemented its COVID-19 response plan, and it has been working with the health department.
On Tuesday, all guests at Base Camp were tested for prevention purposes, according to the release, and anyone who tests positive will be moved to isolation immediately. On Sunday night, 157 people stayed at Base Camp.
“I’m incredibly grateful this is the first known exposure among our guests in over 10 months,” Erchinger-Davis said in the release.
The Lighthouse Mission also reported it is temporarily stopping access to Base Camp services for those who may have been exposed at the City Hall tent camp.
“Lighthouse Mission Ministries is following all recommended precautions to keep their guests and staff safe and healthy,” the release stated. “They have worked closely with community paramedics and the Whatcom County Health Department to develop their COVID-19 protocols, which include: encouraging social distancing, hand washing and mask-wearing among guests and staff, daily symptom checks for all staff members, and a thorough daily cleaning regime.”
