Thurston health officer issues reminder about gatherings as COVID-19 cases grow by 41
Forty-one new cases of COVID-19 were announced on Thursday in Thurston County, the same day the county health officer issued a reminder about limiting the size of gatherings over the Thanksgiving holiday.
In a video posted to YouTube, Health Officer Dr. Dimyana Abdelmalek shared some data: The number of cases per 100,000 population here has now reached 154.3 over the past 14 days, and of all the tests performed in the county, 6.4 percent have come back positive, she said.
She said the rate of positive cases is the highest since the pandemic began in early March.
She reminds residents gatherings are a major cause of disease transmission within the county.
“It is not recommended to gather with people who are not members of your household,” she says in the video, adding that she encourages families to connect virtually. “If you choose to gather outdoors, limit gatherings to five or less who are non-household members.”
Thursday’s 41 cases gives the county 197 for the week and 2,684 to date.
Of the overall total, 1,909 have recovered or are recovering, 158 have been hospitalized at some point during their illness and 42 have died, including three in the past seven days. A woman in her 90s died Wednesday.
The county is also reporting 12 COVID-19 outbreaks in congregate care settings, according to a “weekly update” about the virus here. The update identifies the 12 sites as four adult family homes, four nursing homes, three assisted living facilities and what the county calls a “supported living facility.”
IN THE REGION
▪ Pierce County on Thursday announced 213 cases and seven new deaths. The new deaths were a man in his 90s from Puyallup, a woman in her 70s from Puyallup, a woman in her 70s from south Pierce County, a man in his 70s from central Pierce County, a man in his 60s from Puyallup and a man in his 50s and a man in his 40s from east Pierce County. Three of the seven had underlying health conditions.
▪ Lewis County reported 16 new cases on Thursday for a total of 990 cases and 14 deaths.
▪ Grays Harbor County added nine new cases and no new deaths Wednesday night, giving the county 885 with 15 deaths.
▪ Mason County reported 13 additional cases and one new death on Thursday for a total of 701 with 11 deaths.
AROUND THE STATE, NATION AND WORLD
The state Department of Health on Thursday reported 1,987 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 11 deaths. The state has reported 137,411 cases and 2,603 deaths as of Thursday.
In the U.S., more than 11.8 million cases had been reported with nearly 254,000 deaths as of Friday, according to Johns Hopkins University data.
Globally, 57.3 million cases had been reported and 1.37 million people had died as of Friday, the data show.
This story was originally published November 19, 2020 at 5:56 PM with the headline "Thurston health officer issues reminder about gatherings as COVID-19 cases grow by 41."
