Thurston adds 28 cases, no new deaths Tuesday as December breaks monthly record
Thurston County reported 28 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and no new deaths due to the disease Tuesday as December case totals broke the previous monthly record.
The county had tallied 1,466 total cases in December as of Monday night, surpassing the previous record of 1,331 cases for all of November, according to the latest weekly update. The substantial increase in cases the past two months illustrates the expected surge in the fall and winter months that have prompted extended stay-at-home orders.
The added cases bring the county’s totals to 4,682 confirmed cases and 52 deaths since the first case in March. Additionally, the county reported that 286 people have been hospitalized at some point in their illness, and 3,980 patients are considered recovered or recovering cases, according to the latest data from Thurston County Public Health and Social Services.
Cases are considered “recovered” if the person has been released from hospital or public-health ordered isolation. However, a person could still experience ongoing health issues stemming from the illness after being released.
The county is also reporting nine ongoing outbreaks in congregate care settings with 40 total reported to date. The nine outbreaks include three in adult family homes, two in assisted living facilities, three in nursing facilities and one in a supported living facility, according to the weekly update.
In the past week, 6.1% of COVID-19 tests taken in Thurston County have come back positive. The county’s rate of new diagnoses per 100,000 people was 242.1 from Dec. 5-18, according to the latest data from state’s risk assessment dashboard.
That rate is a key piece in state guidance around reopening schools and the economy.
In the region
- Pierce County added 370 new cases and five new deaths Tuesday for a total of 24,939 cases and 288 deaths.
- Lewis County reported 49 new cases and no new deaths Tuesday, giving it a total of 2,085 cases and 21 deaths.
- Grays Harbor County, home to Stafford Creek Corrections Center where there’s an ongoing outbreak, reported 54 new cases Tuesday. However, those added cases do not include cases that continue to increase at the corrections center, according to the county. In all, the county had reported 2,059 cases and 21 deaths as of Monday night.
- Mason County reported no new cases Tuesday. In total, the county has reported 1,177 cases and 15 deaths.
Around the state, nation, and world
The state Department of Health had reported 240,846 confirmed and probable cases and 3,369 deaths as of Tuesday.
In the U.S., 19.5 million cases had been reported as of Tuesday with 338,000 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
Globally, more than 81.9 million cases had been reported and over 1.79 million people had died as of Tuesday, the data show.
