Five Whatcom regions see COVID infection rate increases last week — two climb above 350
Five of Whatcom County’s seven school district regions saw their COVID-19 infection rates increase last week, according to data released Tuesday, May 4, by the Whatcom County Health Department.
Two now find themselves with rates higher than 350 cases per 100,000 residents in the past two weeks.
Though two regions did see infection rate decreases last week, all seven regions now have rates in triple digits — only the second time that has occurred since the first week in March.
The regions covered by the Lynden and Ferndale school districts now have the highest infection rates, as both are above 350, but the Blaine region, which was the highest last week, saw its rate drop by more than a quarter.
The Mount Baker region was the only other region to see an infection rate decrease, though Bellingham’s gain was small enough that it now has the lowest rate in the county.
The county health department releases weekly data on the location of COVID-19 cases using school districts as geographical boundaries, including each region’s number of total cases during the pandemic and its infection rate. Data in Tuesday’s report was through Saturday, May 1, and the infection rates reflect confirmed cases from April 18 to May 1.
Overall, Whatcom County saw a 3.1% growth in cases (243 cases) between April 25 and May 1 — up from the 2.7% growth and 209 new cases the county reported the previous week.
With 452 cases the past two weeks, Whatcom County has an overall infection rate of 200.9, based on 225,300 residents in the county. Four of the county’s regions had infection rates higher than that mark, according to the county’s data this week.
Here is what the health department’s latest data showed for the seven regions in the county:
Bellingham: Up 2.8% (80 cases) since the April 28 report to 2,935 total cases, and the rate of new infections per 100,000 residents in the past 14 days increased from 118 last week to 133 this week.
Blaine: Up 4.0% (21 cases) since the April 28 report to 542 total cases, and the rate of new infections per 100,000 residents in the past 14 days decreased from 404 last week to 296 this week.
Ferndale: Up 4.1% (66 cases) since the April 28 report to 1,666 total cases, and the rate of new infections per 100,000 residents in the past 14 days increased from 311 last week to 359 this week.
Lynden: Up 3.8% (49 cases) since the April 28 report to 1,344 total cases, and the rate of new infections per 100,000 residents in the past 14 days increased from 198 last week to 375 this week.
Meridian: Up 2.7% (11 cases) since the April 28 report to 420 total cases, and the rate of new infections per 100,000 residents in the past 14 days increased from 93 last week to 167 this week.
Mount Baker: Up 1.6% (seven cases) since the April 28 report to 453 total cases, and the rate of new infections per 100,000 residents in the past 14 days decreased from 165 last week to 139 this week.
Nooksack Valley: Up 1.2% (nine cases) since the April 28 report to 747 total cases, and the rate of new infections per 100,000 residents in the past 14 days increased from 126 last week to 163 this week.
