First Lewis County COVID-19 death announced Monday, 5 new cases in Thurston
A Lewis County resident has died due to complications related to COVID-19, according to Lewis County Public Health & Social Services. It marks the first COVID-19 related death in the county, two days after Thurston recorded its first.
The number of confirmed positive cases continues to rise in other local counties and across the state, country, and world.
The Lewis County resident who died was a person in their 80s who the county Public Health department says had been hospitalized outside of the county for “several weeks” and had other underlying health conditions in addition to COVID-19. However, local public health officials believe the person contracted the new coronavirus that causes COVID-19 within Lewis County.
As of Monday, Lewis County had recorded 16 confirmed positive cases of COVID-19.
“On behalf of Lewis County, we extend our deepest sympathies to the family and loved ones,” LCPHSS director J.P. Anderson said in a prepared statement. “Even though we knew this day was likely to come for someone in Lewis County, facing this reality today is still very hard.”
Thurston County on Monday announced five new confirmed positive cases, bringing its total to 72, with one COVID-19 related death. The newest cases are a woman in her 20s, a woman in her 30s, a man in his 50s, a man in his 60s, and a man in his 70s. The county has added cases to its total each day since March 26.
Mason County tallied one new confirmed case Monday, bringing its total to 16.
As of April 4, there were more than 7,900 confirmed cases statewide with 338 deaths, according to the Washington State Department of Health. More than 5,100 of the cases and more than 260 of the deaths had occurred in the hardest-hit counties of King, Snohomish, and Pierce.
Out of 87,911 tests statewide, 8.6% had come back positive as of April 3, according to DOH.
There were more than 360,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. Monday, more than in any other country. New York City continues to be hit particularly hard, with more than 3,400 deaths, Johns Hopkins University data show.
The country with the second-highest number of cases was Spain, where more than 135,000 cases have been confirmed. However, Italy has seen the most deaths, losing more than 16,000 people to COVID-19 so far.
More than 1.3 million cases have now been confirmed worldwide.
STEPS TO PREVENT THE SPREAD OF COVID-19
▪ Stay home, especially when sick.
▪ Practice social distancing.
▪ Avoid contact with people who are sick.
▪ Avoid crowds.
▪ 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.
This story was originally published April 6, 2020 at 3:56 PM.
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