Spokane County has crossed the 250 mark in confirmed coronavirus cases. Four new cases have pushed the total 251 with 14 deaths. The health district doesn’t list the number of people tested.
Health Officer Bob Lutz says the county has a long way to go before the outbreak would be considered over or even controlled. But the light at the end of the tunnel may be getting brighter.
“I am cautiously optimistic that our numbers have been increasing to the degree they were last week, the week previously. So we certainly haven’t hit our peak," Lutz said. "But again, I’m cautiously optimistic that we seeing sort of a slowing of the number of cases and certainly by the number of people who are not only diagnosed, but by the number of hospitalizations I see. We’re not seeing those consistent numbers the way we were a week or two ago.”
The health district says 47 county residents have spent time in the hospital with the virus. Twenty are still there.
One sign of improving conditions, the health district says it will no longer operate its drive-through screening site at the Fairgrounds on Sunday, due to lack of demand. It will stay open from 10 to 5 Mondays-through-Fridays and 11 to 3 on Saturdays.