WHAT WE KNOW: Coronavirus outbreak at a glance
Published 1:30 am Friday, April 17, 2020
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Here’s what we know so far regarding the COVID-19 outbreak for Clallam and Jefferson counties, plus around the state, nationally and internationally:
The latest
Friday, April 17
• Last weekend, Seattle closed its largest, most popular parks and beaches due to concerns that crowds enticed by warmer weather would spread the coronavirus. This weekend, the city is keeping all its parks open, Mayor Jenny Durkan announced.
• FEMA is closing the pop-up coronavirus testing site it set up last month at Everett Memorial Stadium where since then 2,500 people have since been tested, mostly with negative results.
Only about 5 percent of those tested had positive results, officials said.
• Several Native American tribes sued the federal government Friday, seeking to keep any of the $8 billion in federal coronavirus relief for tribes kept out of the hands of for-profit Alaska Native corporations.
• The despair wrought on nursing homes by the coronavirus was laid bare Friday in a state survey identifying numerous New York facilities where multiple patients died over the past few weeks.
Nineteen of the state’s nursing homes have each had 20 deaths or more linked to the pandemic, the report said.
• Advocates for farm workers in Washington state have filed a lawsuit against the state seeking safer working conditions as the harvest season begins amid a coronavirus pandemic.
• China acknowledged that the coronavirus death toll for epicenter of Wuhan was 50 percent higher than previously reported — a major revision that highlights just how seriously current numbers on infections and deaths around the globe may be understating the true toll of the pandemic.
• India has launched one of the most draconian social experiments in human history, locking down its entire population, including hundreds of millions of people who struggle to survive on a few dollars a day. They are maids, watchmen and street peddlers. ″I am so afraid,″ says one woman.
• Africa could see 300,000 deaths from the coronavirus this year even under the best-case scenario, according to a new report released Friday that cites modeling from Imperial College London.
Thursday, April 16
• President Donald Trump gave governors a road map Thursday for recovering from the economic pain of the coronavirus pandemic, laying out “a phased and deliberate approach” to restoring normal activity in places that have strong testing and are seeing a decrease in COVID-19 cases.
• Gov. Jay Inslee extended and expanded his moratorium on evictions and imposed a new freeze on increases of residential rents in an effort to help residents better handle the economic shutdown amid the coronavirus pandemic.
• Boeing said it will restart production of its commercial airplanes next week in the Seattle area, putting about 27,000 people back to work after operations were suspended because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• This year, Seattle’s largest LGBTQIA+ Pride events will go virtual. According to a joint announcement on Thursday morning from the organizers of Seattle’s annual Pride events, a number of large-scale gatherings including PrideFest at Seattle Center, TransPride, PrideFest Capitol Hill, Seattle Pride Parade and Seattle Pride in the Park will be held virtually rather than in-person.
• Many Americans woke up Wednesday expecting to find a payment of $1,200 or more from the U.S. government in their bank account, but instead they realized nothing had arrived yet — or the wrong amount was deposited. Parents of young children complained they did not receive the promised $500 check for their dependent children.
• Gov. Jay Inslee will address media today via streaming video and telephone at 3:15 p.m. to provide an update on the state’s COVID-19 response.
The governor will be joined by Suzi LeVine, commissioner for the state Employment Security Department.
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• The government said 5.2 million more people applied for unemployment benefits last week, bringing the running total to about 22 million out of a U.S. work force of roughly 159 million — easily the worst stretch of U.S. job losses on record.
• Police in a small New Jersey town had gotten an anonymous tip about a body being stored in a shed outside one of the state’s largest nursing homes.
When police arrived, the corpse had been removed from the shed, but they discovered 17 bodies piled inside the nursing home in a small morgue, intended to hold no more than four people.
“They were just overwhelmed by the amount of people who were expiring,” said Eric Danielson, the police chief in Andover, a small township in Sussex County, the state’s northernmost county.
• A new analysis shows further evidence that Washington state is bending the curve, though the projections have wide uncertainty ranges and assume we all keep distancing as much as we have been. The most recent count of COVID-19 cases in Washington totals 10,783 infections and 567 deaths, according to the state Department of Health.
• Sen. Patty Murray is among the Democrats pushing the White House for broad coronavirus testing, which would help officials fully understand how widely the illness has spread and make informed decisions about when to ease distancing orders.
• The UW Medicine Virology lab says it could start offering blood testing for antibodies to the novel coronavirus as early as next week.
In a tweet, the lab said the first validation experiments on the technology have gone well, and that workers hope to perform thousands of clinical tests a day.
Big news on the antibody testing front… the first set of validation experiments @UWVirology look very good. We may be able to offer clinical testing for 1000s/day as soon as next week! Stayed tuned for details. #WeGotThisWA #CrushTheCurve
— UW Virology (@UWVirology) April 15, 2020
• The government’s lending program for small businesses is on hold. The Small Business Administration said Thursday that it reached the $349 billion lending limit for the program, after approving nearly 1.7 million loans.
• President Donald Trump prepared to unveil national guidelines Thursday on when and how the country starts to recover from the sharp economic pain of the coronavirus pandemic as a bipartisan panel of lawmakers urged him to heed the advice of public health experts.
• Ten nurses have been suspended from their jobs at a hospital in Santa Monica, Calif, after refusing to care for coronavirus patients without being provided protective N95 face masks. They are among hundreds of doctors, nurses and other health care workers across the U.S. who say they’ve been asked to work without adequate protection. Some have taken part in protests or lodged formal complaints. Others are buying — or even making — their own supplies.
Wednesday, April 15
• Gov. Jay Inslee said social distancing efforts in the state have been successful in “flattening the curve” of the coronavirus outbreak, and the state should be able to transition away from the broad restrictions that have been imposed since last month that if the trend continues.
• The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is pledging an additional $150 million in grant funding to help fight the coronavirus outbreak with diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines.
• Gov. Jay Inslee will address the media to provide an update on the state’s COVID-19 response at 3 p.m. today. Watch below:
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• President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that he’s halting funding to the World Health Organization, accusing the organization of failing to do enough to stop the virus from spreading.
• The Washington Department of Health confirmed an additional 156 diagnoses and 25 deaths from COVID-19 Tuesday, bringing the state’s total to 10,694 cases and 541 deaths.
• An investigation by The Associated Press has found that six days of delays by China — from Jan. 14 to Jan. 20 — in alerting the public to the growing dangers of the virus set the stage for a pandemic that has upended the lives of millions, sideswiped the global economy and cost nearly 127,000 lives.
• The European Union moved Wednesday to head off a chaotic and potentially disastrous easing of restrictions that are limiting the spread of the coronavirus, warning its 27 nations to move very cautiously as they return to normal life and base their actions on scientific advice. And U.S. President Donald Trump said he’s enlisting advisers from nearly all sectors of American commerce, the medical field and elected office to help shape his plans to reopen the economy.
• The official death toll from the coronavirus soared in New York City on Tuesday after health authorities began including people who probably had COVID-19 but died without being tested.
• The U.S. military is bracing for a monthslong struggle against the coronavirus, looking for ways to maintain a defensive crouch that sustains troops’ health without breaking their morale — while still protecting the nation. Defense Secretary Mark Esper acknowledged it’s tough to enforce social distancing and other standards with a force of 2.2 million spread out all over the world.
• Efforts to slow the spread of the coronavirus may be choking Africa’s already-vulnerable food supply. Lockdowns in at least 33 of Africa’s 54 countries have blocked farmers from getting food to markets and threatened deliveries of food assistance to rural populations. Many informal markets where millions buy their food are shut.
• U.S. retail sales plummeted 8.7 percent in March, an unprecedented decline, as the viral outbreak forced an almost complete lockdown of commerce nationwide.
• The Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday abandoned plans for a postponed 2020 edition in June or July but declined to give up entirely, saying it will explore other options.
Tuesday, April 14
• Gov. Jay Inslee on Tuesday evening announced new emergency orders intended to help the criminal justice system, aid commercial truckers and protect consumers from debt collectors through the coronavirus pandemic and the state’s response to it, according to the Seattle Times.
One proclamation temporarily suspends statutes allowing the collection of judgments on consumer debt, including garnishments of bank accounts and wage garnishments, according to a statement from the governor’s office.
A second proclamation temporarily relaxes some requirements — which have also been loosened by the federal government — around extending or renewing commercial driver’s licenses and commercial learning permits, according to Inslee’s office.
A third proclamation temporarily suspends statutes of limitations for any crimes and also waives the one-year limitation on raising postconviction challenges to criminal convictions, according to the governor’s office.
The proclamations are effective immediately through May 14.
• Washington’s count of confirmed COVID-19 cases reached 10,694 on Tuesday and 541 deaths, according to the state Department of Health.
The updated count included an additional 156 new cases and 25 deaths, according to the state.
The bulk of the cases remains in King County, which is reporting 4,612 cases and 303 deaths. New deaths also were reported in Island, Klickitat, Pierce, Snohomish, Spokane, Whatcom and Yakima counties.
The state has not updated its count of negative test results.
• Washington state airports will receive more than $310 million in federal funding to help with impacts of COVID-19, according to a news release from U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell’s office.
The funding will be granted to 62 airports in Washington, the Federal Aviation Administration said.
• A cluster of COVID-19 cases has been identified among health care workers at University of Washington Medical Center – Northwest and at least 14 employees have tested positive for COVID-19, according to a message to staffers posted online.
• Seattle’s expansion NHL franchise along with arena operator Oak View Group say they have raised $1 million to support at-risk families in the city and help nonprofit organizations on the Seattle Center campus where the team’s new arena is being constructed.
•Three potential COVID-19 vaccines are making fast progress in early-stage testing in volunteers in China and the U.S., but it’s still a long road to prove if they’ll really work.
China’s CanSino Biologics is beginning the second phase of testing its vaccine candidate, China’s Ministry of Science and Technology said Tuesday.
In the U.S., a shot made by the National Institutes of Health and Moderna Inc. isn’t far behind. The first person to receive that experimental vaccine last month returned to a Seattle clinic Tuesday for a second dose.
NIH infectious disease chief Dr. Anthony Fauci told The Associated Press there are “no red flags” so far and he hoped the next, larger phase of testing could begin around June.
A third candidate, from Inovio Pharmaceuticals, began giving experimental shots for first-step safety testing last week in the U.S. and hopes to expand its studies to China.
Initial tests focus on safety, and researchers in both countries are trying out different doses of different types of shots.
• While researchers test potential solutions, officials continue to urge people to stay away from each other to avoid spreading the virus. Gov. Jay Inslee declined to say in a Monday press conference if he still intends to reopen some businesses by May 4, though he noted that any plans to reopen the state’s economy will be closely coordinated with Oregon and California to ensure the virus remains contained across the West Coast.
• Girl Scouts of Western Washington has canceled all in-person Girl Scout programming through the end of August.
• Conceding that its effort to count the nation’s population has been hamstrung by the coronavirus pandemic, the Census Bureau said Monday it would ask Congress for a four-month delay in delivering the census data used to reapportion the House of Representatives and political districts nationwide.
Monday, April 13
• The daughter of a woman who died of suspected COVID-19 at Life Care Center of Kirkland is suing the company that owns the nursing home.
• The CIA has privately advised its workforce that taking an anti-malarial drug touted by President Donald Trump and some of his supporters as a promising treatment for the novel coronavirus has potentially dangerous side effects, including sudden death.
The warning, featured on a website for CIA employees with questions related to the spread of the coronavirus, came in late March after public discussion – and promotion by the president – that hydroxychloroquine, administered in concert with the antibiotic azithromycin, might prove effective against covid-19, the disease the novel coronavirus causes.
The politically charged debate over hydroxychloroquine – medical experts say there’s still no conclusive evidence that it does what Trump has suggested – underscores a recurring phenomenon in this administration, in which the president stakes out a very public, sometimes controversial position on a subject only to have agencies within the government chart a different, more cautious approach.
• Citing a need to combat disinformation about COVID-19, King County is investing $1 million into outreach organizations, ethnic media, cultural centers and community councils for language access, health literacy and “anti-bias and stigma resources.”
• University of Washington officials announced Monday that all new patients admitted to Harborview Medical Center and the UW Medical Center will be tested for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
• Facing pressure over how they are responding to the new coronavirus inside Washington’s correctional facilities, state officials Monday announced they would set free as many as 950 prisoners to provide more physical distance and limit any potential outbreaks.
• A petition calling for the University of Washington to postpone its Class of 2020 graduation ceremony until fall or winter has nearly reached its goal of 10,000 signatures.
• In yet another sign of the challenges ahead, Gov. Jay Inslee said Monday that plans to reopen the state’s economy after COVID-19 is contained will be closely coordinated with Oregon and California to ensure that the virus remains contained across the West Coast.
“COVID-19 doesn’t follow state or national boundaries,” the governor’s office said in a statement Monday.
Last week, UW announced it would hold a live, virtual ceremony for graduates in June in light of the pandemic. Students graduating this year would also have the option of attending the following year’s commencement.
• Americans are beginning to see the first economic-impact payments hit their bank accounts.
The IRS tweeted Saturday that it had begun depositing the funds into taxpayers’ bank accounts and would be working to get them out as fast as possible. The one-time payments were approved by Congress as part of an emergency relief package intended to combat the economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic.
The exact timing of when people get their money depends on a few factors, such as income and payment delivery method.
• State Sen. Steve Hobbs, D-Lake Stevens, will command a Washington National Guard task force responding to the new coronavirus.
Hobbs, a lieutenant colonel in the National Guard, will oversee Task Force Olympic, according to a news release. The task force is made up of between 150 and 200 members of the Army and Air National Guard, with an initial mission to help distribute food at food banks across Western Washington, and deliver medical beds and respirators.
• Amazon hired 100,000 people in less than a month to bolster its novel coronavirus response and said Monday it is planning to add 75,000 more jobs in its warehouses, grocery stores and delivery network.
• More than 500 people in Washington state have now died of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, and more than 10,000 have been diagnosed.
• Tourists aren’t allowed in California’s most popular national park — Yosemite — but if they could visit, they might feel as if they had been transported to another time. Either to a previous era, before millions of people started motoring into the valley every year, or to a possible future one, where the artifacts of civilization remain, with fewer humans in the mix.
Wildlife is coming out of hiding now, as it did during previous government shutdowns of the park — in 1990, 1995, 2013 and 2019. The difference is that this park closure is expected to be the longest on record.
• California, Oregon and Washington have more ventilators than they can use and — as the nation struggles to scrounge up the lifesaving machines for hospitals overrun with COVID-19 patients — these three Western states recently shipped 1,000 spares to New York and other besieged neighbors to the East.
• The U.S. Supreme Court said Monday it will hold arguments by teleconference in May in key cases, including President Donald Trump’s bid to shield his tax and other financial records.
• A member of the crew of the coronavirus-infected USS Theodore Roosevelt warship died Monday of complications related to the disease, the Navy said.
• WHO says 70 coronavirus vaccines are in development globally.
The numbers
The count of cases and deaths is a moving target, with jurisdictions reporting sometimes-contradictory numbers. Ours might not match what other media are reporting.
• As of 11:59 p.m. April 15, 128,900 individuals have been tested in Washington state, with 11,152 confirmed cases (meaning the person has the virus) and 583 deaths, according to the state Department of Health.
• 583 fatalities statewide.
• 4,796 cases in King County. 320 fatalities.
• 2,020 cases in Snohomish County. 85 fatalities.
• 1,016 cases in Pierce County. 30 fatalities.
• 158 cases in Island County. 8 fatalities.
• 132 cases in Kitsap County. 1 fatality.
• 242 cases in Clark County. 14 fatalities.
• 28 cases in Jefferson County.
• 15 cases in Clallam County.
• Other counties reporting cases: Adams (39), Asotin (10); Benton (284; 32 fatalities), Chelan (62; 5 fatalities), Columbia (1), Cowlitz (26), Douglas (32; 1 fatality), Ferry (1), Franklin (156; 4 fatalities), Grant (128; 2 fatalities), Grays Harbor (12), Kittitas (14), Klickitat (16; 2 fatalities), Lewis (19; 2 fatalities), Lincoln (2), Mason (21), Okanogan (14), Pacific (1); Pend Oreille (1); San Juan (13), Skagit (213; 6 fatalities), Skamania (3), Spokane (282; 15 fatalities), Stevens (7; 1 fatality), Thurston (86; 1 fatality), Wahkiakum (2); Walla Walla (26), Whatcom (262; 25 fatalities), Whitman (11) and Yakima (667; 29 fatalities). (Unassigned: 334)
• 672,293 U.S. confirmed cases; 33,325 total deaths; 56,243 total recovered
• 2,188,194 global confirmed cases; 147,632 deaths; 556,734 total recovered
Latest stories
• 40,000 surgical face masks delivered to Clallam County
• Peninsula restaurants offer takeout, delivery options (updated daily)
• Virus prompts cancellations on the Peninsula (updated daily)
• How social distancing works and what it means for you
Resources
• Jefferson County Public Health
• Clallam County Department of Health and Human Services
• Washington State Department of Health
• Washington state coronavirus response
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
COVID-19 information & best practices
What is the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)?
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, known as SARS-CoV-2, is the virus strain identified in January that causes COVID-19, coronavirus disease, and is spreading from person to person.
While the virus has the potential to cause severe illness and pneumonia in some people, about 80 percent of cases are relatively mild.
Symptoms
• Key symptoms of COVID-19: shortness of breath, inability to eat or drink water due to nausea, fever, cough.
• Symptoms may appear two to 14 days after exposure.
• COVID-19 is transmitted by being in close contact with someone who is coughing or sneezing for a long period of time.
• Exposure must occur >15 minutes, “which is still more than most casual contact but is quite a bit shorter than what we were initially told,” said Dr. Allison Unthank, Clallam County health officer, in an email. Transmission occurs from particulates from coughing and sneezing.
• People are thought to be most contagious when they are most symptomatic (the sickest).
• Some spread might be possible before people show symptoms; there have been reports of this occurring with this new coronavirus, but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.
• It may be possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose or possibly their eyes, but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads, according to the CDC.
“That’s why we push the handwashing and surface cleaning so much,” Unthank said.
• Older adults and people who have severe underlying chronic medical conditions like heart or lung disease or diabetes seem to be at higher risk for developing more serious complications from COVID-19 illness, according to the CDC. Please consult with your health care provider about additional steps you may be able to take to protect yourself.
What to do if you’re sick
• If you suspect you have COVID-19, isolate at home during illness. Restrict activities outside of the home except for getting medical care. Call ahead unless you are in crisis.
• Call your local physician or hospital: Olympic Medical Center: 360-417-7000; Jefferson Healthcare COVID-19 line: 360-344-3094; Forks Community Hospital: 360-374-6271.
• Call 360-417-2430, a hotline that provides local information on the infection.
How to prevent the spread of COVID-19
There is currently no vaccine to prevent COVID-19. The best way to prevent illness is to avoid being exposed to this virus.
As a reminder, according to the CDC, here are recommended everyday preventive actions to help prevent the spread of respiratory diseases:
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth.
• Stay home when you are sick.
• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe.
• CDC does not recommend that people who are well wear a facemask to protect themselves from respiratory diseases, including COVID-19.
• Facemasks should be used by people who show symptoms of COVID-19 to help prevent the spread of the disease to others. The use of facemasks is also crucial for health workers and people who are taking care of someone in close settings (at home or in a health care facility).
• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom; before eating; and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
• If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60 percent alcohol. Always wash hands with soap and water if hands are visibly dirty.
• Once home from work, school, running errands, etc., immediately wash your hands.
• Consider purchasing the following supplies: extra fluids and hydrating drinks (Gatorade and Pedialyte); food for when you’re sick (soups, broths, crackers, honey, nonperishable items); pain and fever medications (acetaminophen or ibuprofen); cough drops and cough medications; prescription medications; tissues; household cleaners (bleach, alcohol, soap, disinfecting wipes).
• You should wash your phone, too. Here’s how.
Check out the World Health Organization’s website for COVID-19 myth busters.
