Coronavirus updates: State passes 69k cases; no fans for Seahawks’ first games
This page includes coronavirus developments around Washington state for Thursday, August 20.
Updated at 4:50 p.m.
Individuals and families throughout King County economically impacted by COVID-19 due to illness, lost wages and unemployment may apply for assistance through the King County Eviction Prevention and Rent Assistance Program announced today by King County Executive Dow Constantine.
The new program dedicates $41.4 million for emergency housing aid and is expected to assist 7,700 to 10,000 households across the region.
King County will use several approaches to serve as many households as possible, as quickly as possible. Funding is prioritized for the highest-need areas and individuals in King County.
To be eligible for assistance, all tenants must have an income that is at or below 50 percent of the Area Median Income over the past 60 days, and must be partially or fully behind at least one month of rent since March 1, 2020. Tenants must also meet one of several secondary criteria, such as having high rent burden, a history of homelessness or eviction or a disability.
State reports 700 new cases Thursday
Updated at 4:45 p.m.
The Washington State Department of Health on Thursday reported 700 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 15 deaths.
Pierce County reported 61 new cases and three new deaths Pierce County had a total of 138 deaths likely caused by COVID-19 as of Wednesday, according to the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department.
Statewide totals from the illness caused by the coronavirus are at 69,389 cases and 1,837 deaths, up from 68,689 cases and 1,822 deaths on Wednesday.
Thirty people with confirmed COVID-19 cases were admitted to Washington state hospitals on Aug. 12, the most recent date with complete data. Late March had two days with 88 people admitted, the highest numbers to date during the pandemic.
The total number of tests conducted is temporarily unavailable, according to the DOH.
The test numbers reflect only polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, whichare given while the virus is presumably still active in the body.
King County continues to have the highest numbers in Washington, with 18,297 cases and 707 deaths. Yakima County is second, with 10,720 cases and 231 deaths. Pierce is third with cases at 6,246.
All counties in Washington have cases. Garfield and Wahkiakum have case counts of fewer than 10.
On Tuesday, Washington had a 912-per-100,000-people case rate. The national rate is 1,680, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Louisiana has the highest rate in the United States at 3,002. Vermont is lowest at 245.
There had been over 5.5 million confirmed coronavirus cases and 174,104 deaths from the virus in the United States as of Thursday evening, according to Johns Hopkins University. More than 790,262 people have died from the disease worldwide.
Pierce County reports 61 new cases
Updated at 4:45 p.m.
Pierce County on Thursday reported 61 new COVID-19 cases and three additional deaths.
According to the health department, the deaths were:
- A man in his 60s from South Pierce County with no known underlying health conditions.
- A man in his 70s from Puyallup with underlying health conditions.
- A woman in her 90s from Puyallup with underlying health conditions.
County totals are now 6,246 cases and 138 deaths since the first case in the coronavirus pandemic was recorded March 6.
The Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department has reported 873 cases in the past 14 days. The 14-day case rate per 100,000 people is 96.8. The goal for counties in Phase 2 is 25 or fewer per 100,000.
There are an estimated 2,137 still-active cases in the county as of Aug. 19, according to the health department.
The county ranks third for cumulative cases in the state.
Daily totals for cases and deaths can change as the county receives new information, finds duplicate data or is assigned cases originally attributed to other counties.
Testing is available at various sites in the county. For more information on testing sites, go to www.tpchd.org/covidtest.
Thursday’s geographical case totals are listed below with previous day’s totals in parentheses:
▪ Bonney Lake: 155 (148)
▪ Central Pierce County: 389 (388)
▪ East Pierce County: 178 (176)
▪ Edgewood/Fife/Milton: 251 (249)
▪ Frederickson: 238 (235)
▪ Gig Harbor area: 164 (161)
▪ Graham: 212 (no change)
▪ JBLM: No longer reported
▪ Key Peninsula: 42 (41)
▪ Lake Tapps/Sumner area: 197 (194)
▪ Lakewood: 583 (580)
▪ Parkland: 341 (340)
▪ Puyallup: 368 (366)
▪ South Hill: 331 (324)
▪ South Pierce County: 153 (150)
▪ Southwest Pierce County: 66 (no change)
▪ Spanaway: 293 (289)
▪ Tacoma: 1,957 (1,941)
▪ University Place: 250 (249)
▪ Unknown: 78 (77)
Washington state reports 425 new cases Wednesday
Updated at 9:20 a.m.
The Washington State Department of Health on Wednesday reported 425 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 13 deaths.
Pierce County reported 62 new cases and two new deaths Pierce County had a total of 135 deaths likely caused by COVID-19 as of Wednesday, according to the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department.
Statewide totals from the illness caused by the coronavirus are at 68,689 cases and 1,822 deaths, up from 68,264 cases and 1,809 deaths deaths on Tuesday.
Thirty-two people with confirmed COVID-19 cases were admitted to Washington state hospitals on Aug. 11, the most recent date with complete data. Late March had two days with 88 people admitted, the highest numbers to date during the pandemic.
The total number of tests conducted is temporarily unavailable, according to the DOH.
The test numbers reflect only polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, whichare given while the virus is presumably still active in the body.
King County continues to have the highest numbers in Washington, with 18,054 cases and 701 deaths. Yakima County is second, with 10,680 cases and 230 deaths. Pierce is third with cases at 6,186.
All counties in Washington have cases. Garfield and Wahkiakum have case counts of fewer than 10.
On Tuesday, Washington had a 906-per-100,000-people case rate. The national rate is 1,666, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Louisiana has the highest rate in the United States at 2,986. Vermont is lowest at 244.
There had been over 5.5 million confirmed coronavirus cases and 172,965 deaths from the virus in the United States as of Saturday evening, according to Johns Hopkins University. More than 784,000 people have died from the disease worldwide.
King County and City of Seattle distributing free face coverings in Rainier Beach
Updated at 9:20 a.m.
King County residents can obtain free face coverings in Rainier Beach in Seattle on Thursday at an event hosted by King County and the City of Seattle. The masks are a part of 25 million face coverings purchased by King County, and will be the fifth public distribution hosted by King County.
The drive-through distribution event is open only to King County residents. Each resident can receive two reusable cloth masks. Each vehicle can obtain masks for up to six household members, or 12 masks per vehicle.
Where: Rainier Beach Community Center, 8825 Rainier Ave S, Seattle, WA 98118
When: Thursday, Aug. 20 from 1-5 p.m.
Note: Enter at the parking lot entrance on Rainier Ave S, and people can drive through to the Treasure Truck toward the back of the parking lot, or walk up to the tent near the community center entrance to receive masks. People can tell the staff person the number of individuals in their household, and receive 2 cloth reusable masks per household member, up to 6 household members. The maximum number of masks a resident can receive is 12.
Washington mandates broad COVID-19 testing for farms experiencing outbreaks
Updated at 9:20 a.m.
Washington agricultural employers are now required to broadly test their workforce when health officials identify a significant outbreak, according to a Wednesday, Aug. 19, updated proclamation from Gov. Jay Inslee.
The update applies to Proclamation 20-57 that established health requirements for agriculture employers during the pandemic. Since the initial proclamation on May 28, total COVID-19 cases have increased by about 500 per day from 21,138 to 67,721, according to a state news release.
Agriculture and food processing industries have led the state in outbreaks in non-healthcare settings, according to an Aug. 4 report. Additionally, the COVID-19 crisis has disproportionately impacted Hispanic people who make up a significant portion of agriculture workers.
Despite making up 13% of the population, Hispanics represent 43% of confirmed COVID-19 cases where race and ethnicity information is available, according to Washington Department of Health data.
“There is no question that we need to escalate our response to this pandemic, and we know that additional focus must be placed on agricultural workplaces,” Inslee said in the release. “From the data, we know that people of color have been disproportionately impacted by this pandemic, and while we have much work to do to address that, this is one step in the right direction.”
Secretary of Health John Wiesman has also ordered farmworkers at Gebbers Farms in Okanogan County to be tested within the coming weeks, according to the release. The Wednesday directive comes in response to a significant outbreak that led to the death of three employees, the release read, and the testing effort will be led by an epidemiology team from the Department of Health.
“Testing is one of the critical tools we have available to slow the spread of COVID-19,” Wiesman said in the release. “With the large and disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on agricultural workers, it is important that we come together to quickly identify cases, including those who may be asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic, so we can ensure they have a safe work environment.”
Seahawks make it official: no fans for at least the first 3 home games
Updated at 9:20 a.m.
The obvious has become official.
The Seahawks have announced their first three home games of the 2020 NFL season will be played inside CenturyLink Field with no fans in attendance. That’s because of ongoing restrictions in King County from the COVID-19 virus, policies that have no end in sight.
Seattle is scheduled to host the New England Patriots on Sept. 20, the Dallas Cowboys on Sept. 27 and the Minnesota Vikings Oct. 11.
“After careful consideration, we have made the difficult determination to play at least our first three home games (Sept. 20, Sept. 27 and Oct. 11) without fans in attendance,” the Seahawks said in a statement they released Wednesday. “While CenturyLink Field has become the best home field advantage in the league thanks to the energy and passion of the 12s, the health and safety of all of our fans, players and staff remains our top priority. While we are hopeful that conditions will improve as the season moves forward, we will continue to follow the lead of public health and government officials to make future decisions about having fans in attendance.”
So much for one of the loudest, most-impacting home-field advantages in the NFL.
“We would definitely miss our fans, no question,” Seahawks general manager John Schneider said when he and the team was staring at this possibility back in June.
This story was originally published August 20, 2020 at 9:25 AM.
