SPOKANE, Wash. – The highest COVID-19 case spike in over two months was reported over the weekend in Spokane County and officials are attributing it to Easter, March Madness and spring break.
On Saturday, the Spokane Regional Health District reported 185 new positives. The last time cases were this high was on February 2 with 190 new positives.
“The cases we are seeing this weekend are reflective of activates that took place 14 days ago,” SRHD Public Information Officer Kelli Hawkins said. “If we look back that is when we saw Easter, NCAA championship and spring breaks were taking place.”
Hawkins said Spokane is seeing the largest case increases in people between the ages of 20 and 29. She said people in this age group are having private gatherings without taking the proper precautions like masks and social distancing.
“It’s concerning because as cases increase there is more of a likely hood of transmission to those more at risk of severe illness and that ends up affecting our hospital’s capacity,” Hawkins said.
Spokane County is still in Phase 3 but was on the verge of getting sent back to Phase 2 due to metrics nearing the pushback cut-off.
“That’s a concern,” Hawkins said about the possibility of being sent back to Phase 2. “We are very close to not meeting the metrics the last time we were evaluated.”
“One spike is not a trend,” Hawkins said.
Following Saturday’s high, Spokane County only reported 69 new cases on Sunday and 75 cases on Monday.
All Washington counties will be reviewed again on May 3 to determine which Phase they fall in.
