7 new COVID-19 cases in Thurston County announced Monday, 10 in Lewis, 3 in Mason
Thurston County Public Health and Social Services on Monday announced seven new confirmed positive cases of COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by a new coronavirus.
The county total as of 3 p.m. was 43, with no deaths.
According to county data, the seven newest confirmed positive cases in Thurston are:
- A man in his 20s;
- Two men in their 40s;
- A man in his 60s;
- A woman in her 40s;
- A woman in her 50s; and
- A woman in her 60s.
Thurston saw its first confirmed positive case March 11, then more positive test results trickled in at a pace of zero to three new cases per day until last Thursday, when the county announced 10 new positive cases in its biggest single-day increase so far. That was followed by three new cases on Friday, six Saturday, and three Sunday.
So far, three Thurston patients are in their 20s, four are in their 30s, 12 are in their 40s, eight are in their 50s, 13 are in their 60s, one is in his 70s, and two are in their 80s.
Interim Thurston County Health Officer Dr. Diana Yu wrote in a letter to the community March 24 that, of the first 11 confirmed cases in the county, six had underlying health conditions that put them at higher risk, and that four were hospitalized and have since been discharged home to recover.
Nearby Mason County Public Health also saw a jump on Monday, with three new confirmed positive cases announced, bringing its total to five.
According to Mason County Public Health, the three new cases are:
- A man in his 50s;
- A man in his 60s; and
- A man in his 70s.
The department is interviewing contacts and the patients are isolating at home, according to a Mason County press release.
“As expected, we have received a lot of test results today,” the Mason County press release, signed by Health Officer Dr. Daniel Stein, reads. “This is due to a backlog in testing, not an acceleration of the virus.”
The two cases that were already tallied in Mason are a woman in her 70s and a man in his 80s, according to Mason County Public Health.
Lewis County now has 10 confirmed cases of COVID-19 after public health officials announced three more cases late Monday. The three new cases are residents in their 50s and 60s.
Grays Harbor County has two confirmed cases.
Washington state is home to more than 4,800 cases and nearly 200 deaths, 114 of which occurred in King County. More than 65,000 people have tested negative for the disease, according to the state Department of Health.
Nationwide, the U.S. has confirmed more than 181,000 cases. New York City has been hit particularly hard with 932 deaths.
More than 846,000 cases have been confirmed worldwide. The U.S. leads the world in confirmed cases, followed by Italy and Spain, two countries ravaged by the disease. More than 12,000 people have died in Italy, Johns Hopkins University data show.
FOLLOW THESE STEPS TO LIMIT THE SPREAD OF COVID-19
▪ Stay home.
▪ If you have to go out in the community, keep a distance of 6 feet or more between you and other people.
▪ If you work, work from home if you can.
▪ Avoid contact with people who are sick.
▪ Wash your hands with soap and water, often.
▪ Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands.
▪ Cover your mouth/nose with a tissue or sleeve when coughing or sneezing.
▪ If you are sick, stay home and avoid close contact with others.
Source: Thurston County Public Health and Social Services.
This story was originally published March 30, 2020 at 4:20 PM.
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