Two new Whatcom COVID-19 cases brings total to 7

Two new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Whatcom County brings the total to seven. That is as of noon on March 18, when the Whatcom County Health Department published its daily update.

At that time, 209 people in the county had tested negative for the new coronavirus.

Locally, testing for the new coronavirus is limited by the amount of equipment for testing and people to perform tests, a county health department public information officer said on March 17. Because of that, health officials suspect that there are likely many more cases in the county.

The two new cases are both males, one in his 50s and the other a teenager. One case is a known close contact of a lab-confirmed case, according to a Whatcom County Health Department press release. The investigation into the other case is still underway.

A growing number of cases in the county aren’t linked directly to a known source, which indicates the new coronavirus is spreading in the community and the risk to the public is increasing, the health department said in the news release.

“It’s important for everyone to realize that the social distancing actions required by the governor, and the further recommendations from our Whatcom County health officer, are a vitally important part of our defense against the spread of COVID-19,” said Cindy Hollinsworth, communicable disease and epidemiology manager for the health department. “It is essential that people wash their hands frequently, limit the size of gatherings to less than 10 people, and stay home if they have any symptoms of a respiratory illness because these are such important steps for controlling this outbreak.”

Statewide, there were 1,012 confirmed cases and 52 deaths as of March 18, according to the Washington State Department of Health. The U.S. had 7,038 cases and 97 total deaths at that time. Globally, there were 214,894 cases and 8,732 deaths at that time, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

For more information on how to limit the virus' spread, visit Whatcom County's COVID-19 website: whatcomcounty.us/3329/Novel-Coronavirus-COVID-19