First confirmed US COVID-19 case was identified 1 year ago in Washington state – KREM.com

One year ago, the first case of coronavirus was confirmed in the U.S. marking the beginning of a public health crisis that turned Americans' lives upside down.

SEATTLE Its been one year since the first U.S. case of coronavirus was identified in Washington state.

On Jan. 21, 2020, health officials reported that a Snohomish County man in his 30s contracted the virus after returning to the U.S. from Wuhan, China. The man traveled through Sea-Tac Airport on Jan. 15, 2020 and later developed symptoms. He was hospitalized at Providence Medical Center in Everett before being released.

The case prompted health officials to screen travelers for the virus and track down people who the man may have been in contact with.

At the time, health officials said there was a low risk to the public and said there wasnt any reason for people to change their behavior. Gov. Jay Inslee said it was not a moment of high anxiety.

It would be another month until Washingtons second coronavirus case and the U.S.s first COVID-19 death were confirmed, but officials later said they believed the virus was already circulating before the Snohomish County case was identified.

At the end of February, a COVID-19 case was identified in a teen in Mill Creek the second in Washington state and one day later the first U.S. coronavirus death was reported, also in Washington state.

A man in his 50s who was living at the Life Care Center in Kirkland died Feb. 26, 2020, two days after he was admitted to the hospital.

The virus quickly spread through the long-term care facility, becoming the epicenter of COVID-19 cases at the beginning of the pandemic. There were eventually 101 confirmed cases among residents and 55 confirmed cases among staff, reports King County Public Health.

By March, health officials had sounded the alarm on the virus. Inslee ordered public schools to close and a ban on large gatherings before issuing a stay-at-home order.

Since the start of the pandemic, there have been 294,017 total cases of COVID-19 in Washington state and 3,940 deaths, according to data from the Washington State Department of Health, as of Jan. 18, 2021.

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First confirmed US COVID-19 case was identified 1 year ago in Washington state - KREM.com