Clallam County reports another COVID death

Jefferson booster clinics planned

A new death caused by COVID-19 has been confirmed in Clallam County, raising the total number of deaths in the county to 59 and to 76 for the North Olympic Peninsula since the pandemic began.

The recent death was a woman in her 90s who was a long-term care resident at a Clallam County facility experiencing a COVID-19 outbreak and was unvaccinated, said Dr. Allison Berry, health officer for Clallam and Jefferson counties, in her Friday morning briefing.

The long-term care facility has had a total of 19 COVID-19 cases confirmed so far and three deaths associated with the outbreak as of Friday, Berry said.

One other outbreak at a long-term care facility in Clallam County has had seven cases confirmed. That outbreak is expected to be closed in the next few days, as no new cases have been found for almost two weeks, Berry said.

Jefferson County did not report any new deaths from COVID-19 on Friday. The county has confirmed 17 deaths among residents since the pandemic began.

No updates are available on weekends.

On Friday, Berry released data on case rates in Clallam County based on each of the three areas, and over the past two weeks, the West End has had a case rate of 658 cases per 100,000 population, Port Angeles has had a rate of 292 cases per 100,000 and Sequim had a rate of 207 cases per 100,000, she said.

The county’s overall case rate is 318 cases per 100,000 for the last two weeks as of Friday, according to county public health data.

Berry does not calculate individual rates for the different areas of Jefferson County due to the already small amount of cases being confirmed in the county paired with the small population and so the data would be too small to be statistically relevant, she said.

The county’s overall case rate is 253.92 for the two weeks prior as of Oct. 20, according to public health data.

Clallam County added 25 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, raising its total to 4,762 since the pandemic began, according to county public health data.

On Friday, Jefferson County added 25 new cases of COVID-19, raising its total to 1,122 since the pandemic began, according to county public health data.

The is a workplace outbreak of 14 cases so far as of Friday in Jefferson County, and there is another large outbreak in Grays Harbor County, which is bleeding over into the West End, Berry said.

The test positivity — the percentage of COVID-19 tests returned positive — in both counties has decreased, with Clallam County’s at 8.37 percent for Oct. 6-19, and Jefferson County’s at 11.5 percent for Oct. 14-20.

The goal is to keep the test positivity below 5 percent, for officials to know that they’re catching the majority of the COVID-19 cases in the community, Berry said.

“You can feel confident that you’re really seeing less disease in the community with a low positivity percentage and decreasing case rates,” Berry said.

Berry has stated that a health order requiring all indoor patrons of bars and restaurants to be vaccinated will be lifted after both counties reach a case rate below 75 cases per 100,000 and remains below that for two weeks.

Signups open at 9 a.m. Monday for two clinics set by the Jefferson County Public Health and emergency management departments.

The Moderna vaccine booster clinics will be on Nov. 6 and Nov. 13. The boosters are for people 65 years old and older and those 18 to 64 years old who are at high risk of severe COVID-19. They must also have received their second shots more than six months ago if they received Moderna’s or Pfizer’s vaccines or two months ago if they received Johnson & Johnson.

Both events are from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. The Nov. 6 event will be at Chimacum School District at 91 West Valley Road. The Nov. 13 event will be at Blue Heron Middle School at 3939 San Juan Ave. in Port Townsend.

Residents can sign up by going to https://jefferson countypublichealth.org/1429/COVID-19 or by calling the Department of Emergency Management Call Center at 360-344-9791.

Olympic Medical Center offers the Pfizer vaccine at the OMC Front Street Clinic in Port Angeles by appointment only.

To make an appointment, call 360-565-0999.

________

Jefferson County reporter Zach Jablonski can be reached at 360-385-2335, ext. 5, or at zjablonski@peninsuladailynews.com.

More in News

An interior view of the 12-passenger, all-electric hydrofoil ferry before it made a demonstration run on Port Townsend Bay on Saturday. Standing in the aisle is David Tyler, the co-founder and managing director of Artemis Technologies, the designer and builder of the carbon fiber boat. (Steve Mullensky/for Peninsula Daily News)
Demonstration provides glimpse of potential for ferry service

Battery-powered hydrofoil could open water travel

Electronic edition of newspaper set for Thursday holiday

Peninsula Daily News will have an electronic edition only… Continue reading

Juliet Shidler, 6, tries on a flower-adorned headband she made with her mother, Rachel Shidler of Port Angeles, during Saturday’s Summertide celebration in Webster’s Woods sculpture park at the Port Angeles Fine Arts Center. The event, which marks the beginning of the summer season, featured food, music, crafts and other activities for youths and adults. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)
Summertide festival

Juliet Shidler, 6, tries on a flower-adorned headband she made with her… Continue reading

Law enforcement agencies to participate in Torch Run

Clallam County law enforcement agencies will participate in the… Continue reading

Crews contain wildland fire near Fisher Cove Road

Crews from Clallam County Fire District 2 quickly contained… Continue reading

Crescent School senior Audrey Gales, right, looks at the homemade regalia worn by fellow senior Hayden Horn on Saturday. Gales had a handmade Native American cap ready for her graduation. Seventeen Crescent students graduated during traditional ceremonies in the school gym. (Dave Logan/for Peninsula Daily News)
Crescent graduation

Crescent School senior Audrey Gales, right, looks at the homemade regalia worn… Continue reading

Pertussis cases see 25-fold increase statewide in 2024

The state Department of Health reported an increase in pertussis… Continue reading

Frank Lowenstein was hired as the Dungeness River Nature Center’s executive director in September 2024. (Frank Lowenstein)
River center director dismissed

Board is looking for candidate to fill role

Weekly flight operations scheduled

There will be field carrier landing practice operations for aircraft… Continue reading

A demonstrator carrying an American flag walks the sidewalk in front of the Clallam County Courthouse on Saturday. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)
Demonstrators march at courthouse

A demonstrator carrying an American flag walks the sidewalk in front of… Continue reading

Port Angeles High School twin graduates Kaylie Mast, left, and Kendall Mast, communicate with their friends by text while waiting for the start of the 2025 graduation parade on Friday. The parade began at Ediz Hook and culminated with a formal ceremony Friday evening at Port Angeles Civic Field. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)
Graduation parade

Port Angeles High School twin graduates Kaylie Mast, left, and Kendall Mast,… Continue reading

Suzy Ames.
College pivoting to meet deficit

School cuts more than $2 million in expenses