PORT ANGELES – There was a twelfth positive COVID-19 case discovered in Clallam County over the weekend. So far 694 people have been tested, there are 12 positives and 22 tests pending.
Unthank talked about when and how the “stay-at-home” restrictions might end. She said the Governor’s May 4 date may be extended, depending on the number of cases, but even if it isn’t, people would only be allowed to go back to work in phases. For instance, she said people who work outside would be among the first group, which suggests that many construction projects would resume, among other things.
“Just so you guys know what to expect, there will come a day where we stop doing this, but it won’t be all at once. It’ll be kind of a phased and organized fashion as we move forward. What will happen is, periodically we will release restrictions as we go, and then we will expect to see little spike in cases after that. And then it’s going to be our job to test and isolate those cases as they come.”
Clallam County is not expected to peak in terms of the outbreak for another week or more, and Dr. Unthank reiterated the importance of maintaining our social distancing practices.
“But the biggest thing I wanted to do today is really thank everyone who’s been staying home. Staying home is an act of solidarity with your community and it is the strongest tool we have to fight this virus. And really, our people have been doing a great job at doing it and that’s why our county is doing so well. But it is working. We really appreciate it. We have to keep doing it in order to make it through this.”