Though a Humboldt County resident has tested positive for the novel corona virus (COVID-19), Del Norte County public health officials are assuring the community that there are no cases here.

Press release from the Del Norte County Public Health Branch and Office of Emergency Services:

Del Norte Public Health and Del Norte Office of Emergency Services (OES) are aware of the news from Humboldt County yesterday, of a confirmed case of COVID-19 and one other suspect case identified in Humboldt County. As has been done elsewhere for other cases in California, the news report confirms that monitoring and isolation procedures are in place for these persons. We would like to reassure Del Norte residents that we DO NOT have any cases here, and the risk remains low for the general public of either county. It is encouraging news that the persons involved have not been affected to the point of requiring hospitalization.

The COVID-19 virus (the Wuhan coronavirus) has been alarming to all, in part because of the intense media coverage of this event. The virus, however, is considered to be a mild infection over 80% of the time, and the persons who are becoming severely ill are usually those who are most likely to get pneumonia, such as the elderly and chronically ill-even among those persons, people are likely to recover completely. The overall risk of dying from this infection is very low, currently estimated at 2-3%. Many experts in the field believe that the true risk is actually much lower.

The best measures for protection for when or if the COVID-19 virus reaches the general population is the same for FLU-cover sneezes and coughs, wash hands, wash surfaces in your home such as door knobs and faucet handles, and stay home when you are sick-all common sense measures that work to prevent or delay transfer of germs of all kinds. We all should be doing these things all the time during flu season-if you are not, now is a good time to start. Flu season is not over and Type A flu is on the rise in many parts of the country. If you have not been vaccinated for the flu, DO SO NOW!

It's not too late. We don’t know if flu vaccination can help people cope with COVID-19, but it certainly can't hurt, and it always helps the health of our community to have as many people vaccinated for flu as is possible.

 

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