Fifth covid-19 case reported in Wahkiakum County

Wahkiakum County Health and Human Services (WHHS) has received a positive test result notification for a 5th COVID-19 case in a Wahkiakum County resident, according to a Monday morning announcement from Chris Bischoff, director of Wahkiakum County's Department of Health and Human Services.

The individual is in self-quarantine and while symptomatic they do not require medical care currently.

"We are working to identify anyone who may have an exposure risk because of contact with the person," Bischoff said. "Those people with close contact will be notified by Health and Human Services (WHHS) staff. At this point, the possibility of additional community spread from this individual seems low.

"We have expected this. We have planned for this. We continue to coordinate with partner agencies to monitor for the disease in the county. WHHS works every day to identify, track, and follow up on cases of potential disease exposure to protect people’s health. The COVID-19 virus is new, but State, Federal, and WHHS public health response is not."

The current risk of COVID-19 in Washington is still high, the announcement said. Public health is identifying 100s more positive cases of the disease in the state every day. We know that the disease is spreading in Washington from person to person, but we have little evidence of that in Wahkiakum.

"If you think you were at risk of exposure to COVID-19, call ahead before you go to your healthcare provider, urgent care, or the emergency department," Bischoff said.