Tri-Cities deadliest week of the pandemic. 22 more die from COVID-19

In the deadliest week since the pandemic began, the Benton Franklin Health District reported 22 more people died of COVID-19 in the two counties.

It surpassed the high rate of 19 in one week earlier this month. There were 16 deaths reported in a single week in mid-January.

Health officials say this week’s deaths are all current. None were from a verification backlog.

Already, there have been more than double the number of deaths in September due to complications of COVID-19 than in August.

With another week left in the month, there have been 77 deaths reported.

Last week, there were 34 new deaths reported. However, 22 of those were from the Washington Department of Health’s reporting backlog between July and Sept. 5.

Even subtracting the backlog, this month has now had the most number of deaths than any other month since the pandemic began.

Last month, 23 Tri-Cities area residents died, which was more than double the 10 deaths in July. In December 2020, there were 36 deaths in a single month.

That brings the total of those who have died in the area from COVID to 459, according to local health officials. Benton County has had 305 deaths and there have been 154 in Franklin.

“One thing we see nationwide is that when there are high hospitalizations it’s followed by high deaths,” a health district spokesperson told the Herald.

While the number of those who are hospitalized for COVID have dipped down to 98 people as of Sept. 24, that still is taxing the staff and resources with 24% of the 408 beds being filled with patients being treated for COVID-10.

The health district doesn’t track whether the drop in patients was because those individuals recovered and were released or whether they died.

Death count

In Benton County the most recent deaths include, two women in their 40s, two women and two men in their 50s, four men in their 60s, one man in his 70s, three women in their 80s and one in her 90s.

In Franklin County, one man each in the 30, 40, 50, 70 and 80 age brackets died along with two women — one in her 40s and another in her 70s.

Only 18 people living in Benton and Franklin counties younger than 40 have died from COVID, but three of those have men in their 30s that have been reported this month.

The health district’s chart that tracks age demographics of COVID-19 victims does not break down the age brackets younger than 40.

Case count

Another 124 new positive COVID-19 cases also were announced in the Tri-Cities area Friday.

An average of 242 cases were reported by the health district each day during the week.

Since the start of September, 29% of all new cases have been in school age children from 5 to 19, said Dr. Amy Person, the health officer for the Benton Franklin Health District.

Since then, about 410 children from newborn to 9 have tested positive, as have about 630 from 10 to 19 years old, according to data from the health district.

In a news conference on Thursday, Person pointed to social gatherings, home environments and sporting events as the root of those cases and not classrooms.

“Despite this very large increase, we have not seen significant outbreaks in schools,” she said — adding that most schools have been following social distancing, masking and ventilation safety precautions.

In all, nearly 44,000 Tri-Cities area residents have tested positive for COVID-19 since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic in March 2020.

This story was originally published September 24, 2021 at 5:34 PM.