Second Whatcom County resident is being tested for new coronavirus
The Bellingham Herald and McClatchy news sites have lifted the paywall on this developing story, providing critical information to readers. To support vital reporting such as this, please consider a digital subscription.
A second Whatcom County resident is being tested for the new coronavirus.
A sample was sent Tuesday, March 3, to the Washington State Department of Health lab in Shoreline, according to Melissa Morin, spokeswoman for the Whatcom County Public Health Department.
No additional details were available about the person being tested.
One other person has been tested in Whatcom County. That was in January and that test was negative.
Symptoms of the illness, also called COVID-19, include fever, cough and shortness of breath.
The Whatcom County resident is being tested under the current, expanded guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to include those who have symptoms but haven’t recently come into contact with someone known to be ill with COVID-19 or traveled to countries affected by the outbreak.
Those countries are China, Japan, Italy, Iran and South Korea.
As of Tuesday morning, March 3, no one has tested positive for COVID-19 in Whatcom County.
This story was originally published March 3, 2020 at 11:48 AM.
