San Juan Island COVID Outbreak Contained, Six New Island Cases Reported

Contributed Image/CDC

From San Juan County

Since the last update on Friday, April 16, total cases in San Juan County have increased from 166 to 173.

There are 25 close contacts of positive cases currently in active quarantine.

San Juan Island

There are six new cases since the last report on San Juan Island.

Three of these new cases are close household members of each other, and the initial transmission source is through mainland travel.

One of these new cases is possibly tied to the hosting of off-island visitors. Case investigations are ongoing for two of these cases.

There are six positive cases under active monitoring on San Juan Island at this time.

It seems that the large outbreak that had been ongoing on San Juan Island has been contained.

Orcas Island

There are no new cases on Orcas Island since the last update, and no confirmed positive cases under active monitoring on Orcas Island at this time.

Lopez Island

There is one new case on Lopez Island since the last update. The new case is a close household contact of previously reported positive cases. The initial transmission source is related to mainland travel.

There are three confirmed positive cases under active monitoring on Lopez Island at this time.

Shaw Island

There are no new cases on Shaw Island since the last update, and one confirmed positive case under active monitoring on Shaw Island at this time.

Overall:

First off, if you’re not vaccinated, do it now. There are clinics on San Juan, Orcas, and Lopez islands in the first half of next week, and there are many slots left. Sign up at www.sjccovid.com.

Good news: while we’re not 100% out of the woods, it seems that the large outbreak that had been ongoing on San Juan Island has been contained.

Great cooperation and patience from everyone involved and an almost indescribable amount of work by the county contact tracing team were the key pieces of a remarkable effort to prevent further spread. So while we’re still watching the situation closely, there is cause for optimism.

Less good news: we’re starting to see cases popping up from islanders who have traveled or who have hosted off-island visitors. This is hardly a surprise but is clearly a risk going forward.

That said, so far everyone involved in these cases has done the right thing by minimizing their exposures to the community once they returned home. That sort of thoughtful behavior will do a lot to keep the islands safe.

If you’re unvaccinated and are in a high-risk situation while traveling (indoors, unmasked, with others who are unvaccinated), stay home when you get back to the islands. This is also true for kids too. Keep them home for two weeks once you’re back.

Don’t take COVID lightly. We’re seeing young, healthy, perfectly strong adults who are dealing with prolonged and very difficult struggles with COVID.

If you’re on the fence about getting the vaccine, get it now, while there are very, very small (like one in a million small) risks that are associated with the vaccine, you’re chances of getting COVID and suffering from serious long-term complications are far, far higher.

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