||| FROM BRENDAN COWAN for DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT |||
Note: Current positive case numbers are available online at the County Case Data Dashboard. As indicated on that page, these numbers are only updated after case confirmation is complete, usually daily. It is possible that other information sources in community may be quicker to report on new cases, but ensuring privacy and accuracy is critical for this official information source.
Since the last update on Friday March 12, total cases in San Juan County have remained steady at 129. Note that there are zero close contacts of a positive case currently in active quarantine.
ORCAS ISLAND
There are no new cases on Orcas Island since the last update.
There are no confirmed positive cases under active monitoring on Orcas Island at this time.
LOPEZ ISLAND
There are no new cases on Lopez Island. There are no positive cases on Lopez Island at this time.
SAN JUAN ISLAND
There are no new cases on San Juan Island. There are no positive cases under active monitoring on San Juan Island at this time.
OVERALL PICTURE
While cases continue to remain relatively low, some things to keep in mind:
- For the state of WA, total new cases per day are just below the rate we experienced during the peak of the wave of cases this past summer. Overall, the State is still nowhere close to the low rates we experienced from April to June.
- Some of our neighboring Counties have even less encouraging case counts. Whatcom County’s cases per day are still significantly higher than anything experienced from March to October of 2020. Island County’s cases are actually on the rise and approaching their highest levels to date.
- Bottom line: the current relaxation of regulations and reopening of many activities does not mean that we are at our lowest case totals to date. It just means that most of WA has experienced a drastic reduction in cases from the winter peak. People traveling to the mainland or hosting off-island guests and engaging in indoor, unmasked contact need to recognize that the risk of becoming infected is actually greater than it was during many other months over the past year.
On your second point, Brendan, Whatcom County appears to be experiencing a serious outbreak of the B.1.1.7 variant coronavirus, which has been causing Covid-19 surges in several European countries like the UK. See my article on this subject in “Northwest Citizen”:
https://nwcitizen.com/entry/a-variant-virus-outbreak-in-whatcom-county
Whatcom County currently has the second highest number of confirmed B.1.1.7 cases in the state, behind only King County, which has almost ten times the population.
Actually, anecdotal evidence from my Paris-based family suggests that widespread violation of the French social distancing protocols by the 20-29 age cohort as well as the 30-39 age cohort is at least partially responsible for the spread of the UK variant in metropolitan France, as was confirmed in today’s Financial Times reporting. The Parisian youngsters are rebelling against the strict government quarantine protocols, but the government is responding with a 7-day a week 6pm curfew while reverting back to some of its earlier senseless behavior (i.e. demanding self-certified affidavits be carried by all who venture outdoors).
Data published today by Moderna suggests its vaccine remains effective against the UK variant.
Vaccinating as many people as quickly as possible remains the sensible public health strategy, while observing reasonable social distancing and masking among the non-vaccinated. Your articles are IMHO needlessly alarmist, but what else is new?
Just reporting the facts, ma’am, while trying to recognize the uncertainties in the data.