38 weeks now since the Friday night announcement that King County had its first case of COVID-19 – now, we’re dealing with a surge, and here’s the latest:
NEWEST KING COUNTY NUMBERS: From the Public Health daily summary:
*37,435 people have tested positive, 638 more than yesterday’s total
*835 people have died, 1 more than yesterday’s total
*2,914 people have been hospitalized, 13 more than yesterday’s total
*612,290 people have been tested, 4.135 more than yesterday’s total
One week ago, those totals were 33.368/828/2,791/587,735.
STATEWIDE NUMBERS: See them here.
WORLDWIDE NUMBERS: 57.5 million cases, 1,372,000+ deaths – see the nation-by-nation numbers here.
IF YOU’RE STILL PLANNING A HOLIDAY GATHERING: Please don’t, local and state authorities said again today. King County’s public-health officer Dr. Jeff Duchin held a media briefing and outlined various troubling trends, including a current positivity rate of tests around 7 percent (South/Southeast King County are the major hot spots). Current COVID-19 hospitalizations are more than twice what they were earlier this fall. Overall, Dr. Duchin said, “There’s way too much contact going on in every area of our lives.” Watch his briefing here.
FINANCIAL HELP Gov. Inslee had a briefing today too. He announced more financial relief in the works:
$70 million in business support grants.
$30 million for the recovery loan program.
$20 million for rental assistance.
$15 million for energy bills for low-income households.
In the Q&A, he was grilled again about the newest business restrictions. He insisted that the state is “on fire” with the virus and as a result “it’s beyond risky to be in a restaurant right now,” among other places. You can watch his briefing here.
REOPENINGS: After weeklong COVID-related closures, Supreme and Ma’ono in The Junction (which share owners) reopened tonight.
SPEND LOCAL: Another tool to help you do that was launched today by the city – Shop Your Block.
FREE CHILD CARE: The city is making it available to income-eligible families through year’s end.
NEED FOOD? Three one-time pre-holiday distributions are happening in West Seattle tomorrow.
GOT INFO OR PHOTOS? westseattleblog@gmail.com or text/voice 206-293-6302 – thank you!
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