Summer events should be canceled due to coronavirus, Whatcom Health Director says
Prepare yourself for the COVID-19 ‘new normal,’ says state health chief
County Health Director Recommends Summer Event Cancellations
Whatcom
County Health Department as a lead partner, is
working to prevent and mitigate the spread of COVID-19 locally.
Consistent with that key objective, and in line with recent
simulation models, the Health Department
recommends cancellation of summer events throughout Whatcom County.
In a letter to community leaders today, April 14, Erika Lautenbach, Whatcom
County Health Department director, noted that work already underway to mitigate
the spread of COVID-19 has been showing results.
“We see positive effects of the efforts to contain the virus, in large part due
to the social distancing measures put into place in March,” said Lautenbach.
Governor Jay Inslee initially announced his Stay
Home, Stay Healthy order on March 23; on April
2, he extended
the order through May 4.
Modeling presented by the Health Department on
April 13 indicate Whatcom County is "on the downside of the first wave of
COVID-19 spread locally. Scenarios suggest that with continued social
distancing, the next wave could be mitigated as well. However, if group gatherings
resume too soon, the virus’ spread could be deadlier.
Lautenbach said that’s why she recommends that all summer events – including
parades, community festivals and fireworks displays – should be cancelled.
“I recognize that this recommendation creates considerable disappointment,”
said Lautenbach. “However, the long-term health of our community and our
economy could be further damaged if we move too quickly to resume the
activities that we know will put us at risk.”
For more information on COVID-related recommendations, visit the Whatcom
County Health Department COVID-19 webpage.
For updates on WUC work to prevent the spread of the novel virus, visit
WhatcomCOVID.com
or the Whatcom Unified Command: COVID-19 Facebook page.