SEATTLE _ Six people in Washington have now died from COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus, state and King County officials announced Monday as they said that an extraordinary effort to contain and manage the health crisis is moving toward a new stage.
While stressing that most people will experience mild symptoms, the officials said more cases are inevitable and they will soon stop intensively following up on each one. Rather, they will focus on outbreaks and giving individuals, schools and other institutions the best advice on how to minimize illness.
"We're pivoting toward a more community-based approach," Jeff Duchin, health officer for Public Health _ Seattle & King County, said at a news conference.
At the same time, King County Dow Constantine said he had signed an emergency declaration and is in final negotiations to buy a motel where patients can recover in isolation.
"My real estate people tell me it is all but done," Constantine said of the sale. The motel, which the county has not yet identified, should be available for patients by the end of the week, he said.
The county is also in the process of siting modular units, aimed primarily at people experiencing homelessness who need a place to recover.
Developments around the coronavirus have moved rapidly since the first local death was announced over the weekend and as people around the world are clamoring for news about the virus and how to protect themselves.
"This information is really changing by the hour," state Health Officer Dr. Kathy Lofy said.
As of the news conference, there were 18 cases in the state, 14 of them in King County and four in Snohomish County.
All the deaths occurred at EvergreenHealth Health Medical Center in Kirkland, according to Dr. Ettore Palazzo, a spokesman for the hospital. Five of those were of King County residents and one a Snohomish County resident.
The death of a man in his 40s was the first for Snohomish County, according to that county's Health District.
Of the remaining deaths, most were older people: two women in their 80s and two men in their 70s. All but one of those had underlying health conditions, making them more vulnerable to the disease.
One, however, was a man in his 50s. Health officials did not say if that man _ or the Snohomish County man in his 40s who died _ had any preexisting conditions.
A variety of hospitals are caring for COVID-19 patients, including Overlake Medical Center, Virginia Mason Medical Center, Valley Medical Center and Highline hospital. But EvergreenHealth, with 10 of the state's 18 cases, has borne the brunt.
Eight of them are also linked to Life Care Center according to Duchin. Officials have previously said 50 residents of the Kirkland nursing home have shown possible signs of the virus.
Asked why Kirkland has become such a hotspot of the illness, Duchin said he didn't think there was any rhyme or reason. "A lot of it is random," he said.
It also may be that officials just know of more cases in Kirkland because EvergreenHealth, according to Duchin, has been very aggressive about testing for the virus.
Officials indicated that their response is evolving. At this point, they said, they were not recommending widespread closure of schools or cancellation of public events.
"We have to carefully weigh the risks and benefits," Duchin said. "There are so many unknowns."
Instead, officials emphasized individual precautions: washing hands frequently, avoiding touching your face, staying home when sick and perhaps even staying away from crowds, especially for people over 60 and those with health conditions.
Also a good idea: an emergency preparedness plan, like keeping essentials in the house. That should not include masks. People should leave them for health care workers on the front line of the crisis, said Seattle & King County Public Health Director Patty Hayes.
Some people will have a harder time coping with the new coronavirus, and those include people experiencing homelessness. The modular units are aimed at helping them, and any others who for whatever reason don't have a home to recover in, according to Leo Flor, director of King County's Department of Community and Human Services.
These units formerly housed oil workers in Texas, Constantine said. The county bought them before the COVID-19 outbreak to serve the homeless population, and used them to set up the Eagle Village complex for Native Americans south of downtown Seattle.
Fourteen such units, now in storage, will be placed in several locations around the county, including Seattle, as part of the coronavirus effort, the executive said. The four-room units could house more than 100 people in all.
In addition, the county has newly built modular units at a facility in Marysville that it plans to use for isolation and recovery.
Unlike the modular units, the motel will not be aimed at patients who are homeless, according to Mark Ellerbrook, the county's Housing & Community Development director.
Even while they stressed how seriously they were taking the situation, and the uncertainty around how it will develop, officials seemed eager to avoid scaring people into paralysis.
"We understand people still need to carry on with their lives," Duchin said.
