7th covid-19 case reported in Wahkiakum County

Wahkiakum County Health and Human Services (WHHS) has received a positive test result notification for a 7th COVID-19 case in a Wahkiakum County resident. The person has already recovered.

There are no close contacts, reported WHHS Director Chris Bischoff. At this point, Bischoff said, the possibility of additional community spread from this individual is very low.

"We have expected this," Bischoff said. "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, Bischoff said in the report. 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.

To protect oneself and people around you from this and other diseases:

• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.

• Wear a cloth mask when going out in public.

• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands.

• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.

• Avoid close contact with others.

• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash and wash your hands.

• Clean and disinfect objects and surfaces.

• Stay at home and away from others as much as you can.

The most common ways human coronaviruses spread:

• Coughing and sneezing.

• Contact with a sick person—within six feet—for 10 minutes or more.

• Contact with an object or surface with the virus on it, then touching your mouth, nose, or eyes before washing your hands.

The health department is a source for reliable local public health information; go to Wahkiakumcovid19.com for more information. Make sure to seek out and share accurate information related to the COVID-19 outbreak. Diseases don’t discriminate or stop at city, county, or international borders. COVID-19 may have originated abroad, but not everyone from parts of the world with increased risk has the disease or was potentially exposed to it.