King County moved into Phase 2 of the state’s Safe Start plan on June 19. For the Parks Division of the Department of Natural Resources and Parks (DNRP), going through these phases has meant taking steps to encourage new habits while re-opening its parks and trails following the COVID-19 closures. As it re-opens, King County Parks has put several measures in place, including on-site signs, recreation policies, and operational adjustments. Parks is also part of the Recreate Responsibly Coalition, a statewide group that has come together during the pandemic to educate the… Read More

Every year in the U.S., about 9,000 people are injured using fireworks at home, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). Most of these injuries take place around the July Fourth holiday. This year, we have been dealing with the dual pandemics of COVID and racial injustice. Most public fireworks displays have been cancelled. If you decide to use consumer fireworks, please do so with caution and follow local rules and regulations. In addition, remember that social distancing, wearing a face covering and hand-washing are still very important. Fireworks are banned… Read More

Crossposted from Metro Matters  Ridership on King County Metro has increased in recent weeks as more people choose to ride public transportation and the state allows more activities under its “Safe Start” plan. Metro continues to require masks or face coverings be worn on transit. Buses currently have reduced passenger limits to support social distancing and limit the spread of COVID-19.  Metro analyzed preliminary extrapolations to create an unofficial estimate of weekly ridership, which remains lower compared to a year ago but shows early signs of recovery.  Read more. 

Already activated in February for COVID-19, King County had a dual activation of the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) from May 30 through June 7 in response to protests over the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.  “Dual activations are very rare anywhere, and they’re tough,” said Brendan McCluskey, Emergency Management Director. “Staff rose to the challenge. We had to keep track of both situations, including resources and costs. We had more people in the EOC and had the need for physical distancing with COVID-19.”  On a few occasions, the King County EOC… Read More

Crossposted from Public Health Insider  Are you a parent or caregiver wondering what Phase 2 means for your family? We’ve compiled a list of questions and answers that may help you navigate through some of the confusion as we safely re-open.    Can we see friends and family again?    Yes! You can gather with up to five favorites once a week. For example, you can invite five or fewer friends over to your home once a week. (That number six on your list should be on your B team and will have to come over the following week). In reality,… Read More

With the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s even more important to prepare ahead for wildfire smoke and extreme heat this summer. Washington State is already above average for the number of fires for this time of year, and experts are forecasting a high chance of wildfire smoke in our region this summer. Wildfire smoke may make it more difficult to fight respiratory infections such as COVID-19. It may also increase some people’s sensitivity to infection by COVID-19 and in some cases may make the symptoms of COVID-19 more severe. A previous COVID-19 infection may… Read More

Crossposted from Public Health Insider  The recently expanded “Daily COVID-19 outbreak summary” shows the latest data for test results, hospitalizations and deaths in King County and in each city, town and zip code. Dashboard users can use “tabs” to filter by race, age and gender for each location. They can also compare how each city or zip code area compares to the overall rates for King County. (Most unincorporated areas are also included, and more will be added.)    The dashboard includes demographics for race, age, and gender.  (Don’t miss the other COVID-19 data dashboards,… Read More

Crossposted from Tails from RASKC  King County is now in Phase 2 of Gov. Inslee’s “Safe Start” plan, another step forward as we work to carefully and gradually recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Our focus at Regional Animal Services of King County continues to be helping people and pets safely as our region emerges from the public health emergency.  Many of our services can be accessed online or by phone from the comfort of your home, including animal control response, lost and found pet services, and pet licensing. Phase 2 allows many businesses and service providers to assist in-person… Read More