Two local counties last week reported 28 new COVID-19 related deaths.

Grant County Health District reported nine deaths on Oct. 11, and nine more on Oct. 13 with the deaths occurring in the months of September and October. 

Of the 18 deaths in Grant County, 11 were men and seven were women; ages ranged from their 40s to 80s; 16 had underlying health conditions; three were fully vaccinated, and 15 were unvaccinated.

Of those who died, nine were from Moses Lake, five were from Soap Lake, two were from Quincy, one was from Mattawa, and one from Royal City. 

The health district delays the announcement of COVID-19 associated deaths to give families time to notify their loved ones. They also verify that COVID-19 is listed as a cause of death on the death certificate to ensure they are not reporting deaths that are not attributed to COVID-19. All reported deaths of Grant County residents attributed to COVID-19 were verified with the death certificate, testing, and other case information.

Okanogan County Public Health announced Oct. 14 that 10 deaths had occurred in the county in the first two weeks of October.

The five men and five women who died ranged in age from their 30s to their 90s, including two people who were fully vaccinated.

Both GCHD and OCPH included the same notice in their releases, which emphasizes the importance of COVID-19 safety precautions such as wearing masks, social distancing, and avoiding group gatherings: “Anyone can have COVID-19 and not know they are contagious. COVID-19 is easily spread to close contacts, friends, family and loved ones before a person knows they are unintentionally spreading the virus.”

Coulee Dam has seen one additional Covid case in the past two weeks, for a total of 99 since the pandemic began; Elmer City is up by one case for a total of 36; and Nespelem is up four cases for a total of 117, according to OCPH data last updated on Oct. 19.

In Grant County, as of Oct. 19, the Grand Coulee and Electric City area has seen a total of 143 cases, up six in the past two weeks.

There were 22 Grant County residents hospitalized with COVID-19 ranging in age from their 30s to 80s. The county has received reports of 389 new cases in the last week.