SOUTH BEND — The Pacific County Health and Human Services Department reported a grim milestone last week, one that most probably thought was unthinkable just a year ago as local communities were largely being spared the carnage that others were facing throughout the country.

On May 14, the department reported that the county exceeded 1,000 reported cases of covid-19 since the pandemic began in 2020, although the actual total is likely even higher. Nearly 5% of Pacific County’s population has tested positive for the virus.

If you’d told county health director Katie Lindstrom a year ago that Pacific County would hit 1,000 cases by May 2021, she would’ve said that was “crazy.”

“A year ago, we were still barely trickling cases in. We really didn’t see our cases surge until late fall,” county health director Katie Lindstrom said. “A lot of other communities had way higher case rates than us, but then we really took off. I feel like we’ve been on a similar level as most other places since then; higher than I’d like, but lower than when we were at our surge.”

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‘A lot of other communities had way higher case rates than us, but then we really took off. I feel like we’ve been on a similar level as most other places since then; higher than I’d like, but lower than when we were at our surge.’

Katie Lindstrom

County health director

Pacific County was the second-to-last county in the state to report its first covid-19 case last spring, and didn’t even surpass 100 reported cases until October. But by the next month the county was reporting back-to-back 100-case weeks, and the county was one of hottest spots for covid-19 activity in the country in November and December.

And although every life lost due to covid-19 is tragic, Pacific County has reported just 12 deaths and 40 hospitalizations throughout the course of the pandemic. The county’s 1.2% death rate is lower than the national rate of about 1.8%, despite the county’s older-skewing population.

Lindstrom credited the county’s low death rate to the fact that much of the county’s senior population reside in south county, while a large majority of the county’s cases are of people living in north county.

“I think our case count by age is not representative of our demographics as a county,” Lindstrom said. While an estimated 40% of county residents are age 60 and older, just 21% of the county’s cases are comprised of people in that age group.

About two-thirds of the county’s covid cases are concentrated among north county residents, according to county health department data. That includes Raymond, where 468 people listing a Raymond address as their primary residence have tested positive, as well as South Bend, where 215 people have tested positive. In south county, 92 people in Long Beach, 61 people in Ocean Park, 54 people in Naselle and 37 people in Ilwaco have tested positive.

As of May 17, there have been 1,021 cases reported in Pacific County, including 50 over the past 14 days. There are 34 currently active cases, and the case rate per 100,000 people over the past 14 days is 231, up from 148 a week ago.

On Monday, the county health department also reported that nine fully vaccinated residents have tested positive for covid-19 since the beginning of the year. These “breakthrough” cases represent 2.2% of the 404 total cases that have been reported in Pacific County in 2021, and show that while not 100% effective — no vaccine ever is — the vaccines in use provide significant protection against the virus.

About 43% of the county’s total population has received at least one vaccine dose as of May 15, up from 42.2% a week ago. The county could see a bump of people initiating vaccination in the coming days and weeks, as children age 12 to 15 became newly eligible for Pfizer’s vaccine just last week.

About 37.6% of residents are fully vaccinated, up from 36% the previous week. More than 19,900 doses overall have been given in Pacific County, and that number should surpass 20,000 sometime this week. Statewide, 6.34 million doses have been given, up from 5.96 million doses a week ago.

For a list of all upcoming vaccine clinics in Pacific County, visit www.tinyurl.com/paccoclinics.