Whatcom sets new weekly record for COVID-19 cases, as another death reported by state
Whatcom County wrapped up 2021 by setting a new record high for confirmed COVID-19 cases within a week and seeing another death linked to the respiratory illness.
The death reported Thursday, Dec. 30, brought Whatcom County pandemic total to 201, according to the Washington State Department of Health’s COVID-19 Data Dashboard, and was the eighth death reported by the state last week and 16th in 12 days.
The death reported Thursday was for a person who first tested positive for COVID-19 on Dec. 3, The Bellingham Herald’s analysis of the state’s epidemiological data found, bringing the county’s epidemiological death total for December to 10.
Since Aug. 1, the beginning of the most recent surge, there have been 89 epidemiological deaths, The Herald found, which is 44% of the county’s pandemic total.
With 9,900 total cases (confirmed and probable combined) in the county since Aug. 1, Whatcom has seen 0.9% of cases during that time frame result in death, The Herald’s analysis showed. That is better than the county’s total pandemic death average of 1.0%, according to the state’s data, and the statewide 1.2% rate for the pandemic.
No other information about the person whose death was reported Thursday, such as their age, gender, vaccination status or hometown, was reported.
Before the death reported Thursday and six others reported Tuesday and Wednesday, 73% of Whatcom’s 82 deaths since Aug. 1 were in people 65 and older, according to The Herald’s analysis of the latest age-range data released by the state on Monday, Dec. 27. An additional nine deaths (11%) were in people between 50 and 64, while 11 (13%) were in people between 35 and 49.
Through last Monday’s data, no COVID-related deaths have been seen in any Whatcom residents younger than 30 during the pandemic, according to data released by the Whatcom County Health Department, though there have been four deaths among people in their 30s and 12 in their 40s.
Six of the eight deaths reported between Dec. 19 and 24 were in unvaccinated or partially vaccinated residents, according to a report by the Whatcom County Health Department on Friday, Dec. 31, including a woman in her 60s, a woman in her 70s, two men in their 40s, a man in his 60s and a man in his 90s. The two fully vaccinated residents to die during that time period were a woman in her 60s and a woman in her 90s, according to the report.
The Herald’s analysis of data published by the county health department shows that 63% of the 60 deaths since Aug. 22 have been in unvaccinated or partially vaccinated residents.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a person is still considered “fully vaccinated” two weeks after receiving their second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Booster and third doses are not yet factored in.
More Whatcom numbers
Whatcom County broke its record for the number of new confirmed COVID-19 cases reported in a week by the state with 661 reported last week. The previous record and only other time Whatcom County surpassed 600 confirmed cases reported in a week was when it had 653 cases reported between Jan. 3 and 9, 2021.
With 192 new cases reported by the state on Thursday, Whatcom County now has a pandemic total of 18,686 confirmed cases.
Other Whatcom County COVID data released Thursday on the state dashboard shows that:
▪ Whatcom saw an additional six probable cases reported Thursday, resulting from a positive antigen test not confirmed by a molecular test, bringing its pandemic total to 1,628 probable cases. Whatcom had 39 probable cases reported last week — eight more than the week before.
▪ Whatcom’s weekly infection rate stands at 196 cases per 100,000 residents based on the state’s most recently completed data from Dec. 15-21, which is up from 140 the week before (Dec. 8-14). Whatcom has the eighth-highest weekly infection rate of the 39 counties in the state, according to the state dashboard.
▪ With three COVID-related hospitalizations reported Thursday, Whatcom has seen 1,030 hospitalizations reported during the pandemic. The county had 22 hospitalizations reported last week, which was up eight from the week before.
▪ Whatcom’s weekly hospitalization rate stands at 7.5 COVID-related hospitalizations per 100,000 residents for the most recently completed data from Dec. 15-21, which is unchanged from the week before (Dec. 8-14). Whatcom has the 15th-highest weekly hospitalization rate of the 39 counties in the state, according to the state dashboard.
▪ St. Joseph hospital in Bellingham reported that it was treating a pandemic high 45 patients for COVID-related symptoms on Monday, Jan. 3, which was up three from six from Sunday and 15 more than the last report on Thursday.
▪ The state’s latest vaccination report on Wednesday showed the county has now administered 330,490 vaccine doses in Whatcom County — an increase of 5,217 last week. The state reported 57,208 additional doses, which include extra doses administered to immunocompromised residents and booster shots, have been administered in the county.
▪ The state estimated that 69.3% of the total population in the county has initiated vaccination and 63.7% had completed it. Both percentages were ahead of the averages across the state, which reported that 68.3% of the state’s total population initiated vaccination and 62.7% are fully vaccinated.
▪ The state is still working “to increase its capacity to process the increased testing data volume received in the last few months” by Feb. 28.
▪ The statewide Effective Reproductive Number (R-effective) was not updated last week due to the holiday.
The CDC’s COVID Data Tracker on Monday continued to list the level of transmission in Whatcom County as “High” (the highest of four classifications). Thirty-two of Washington state’s 39 counties and 91% of counties nationwide are listed in the “High” category.
Whatcom monthly COVID update
Whatcom County had a nearly 10% increase in confirmed COVID-19 cases reported during December over its numbers in November, The Herald’s analysis of state data showed.
Whatcom had 1,825 confirmed COVID-19 cases (or 58.9 per day) reported during December, which was up from 1,665 reported in November (55.5 per day) and the county’s highest count since it had 1,943 cases reported in September.
Whatcom’s death total during the pandemic climbed by 26 in December (from 175 on Nov. 30 to 201 reported Dec. 30), while its total hospitalizations grew by 90 (from 940 Nov. 30 to 1,030 Dec. 30). Though the deaths were up from 14 reported in November, the hospitalizations were down from the 113 the previous month.
Additionally, Whatcom saw 181 probable cases reported in December, more than the 171 reported in November.
This story was originally published January 3, 2022 at 11:26 AM.
