YAKIMA â A sharp spike in COVID-19 cases in Yakima County in recent weeks is the fallout of Thanksgiving gatherings, which led to an exponential increase in new cases, according to local health officials.
As a result, the county has surpassed both peak hospitalization over the duration of the pandemic and the peak average of new cases reached over the summer, said Yakima Health District spokeswoman Lilián Bravo.
With Christmas and New Yearâs Day drawing near, health officials strongly urge people to avoid gatherings with friends or family members outside their immediate households.
Yakima County saw a spike in COVID-19 cases after Thanksgiving, Bravo said. Case investigations showed that those infected commonly believed they had become infected through family gatherings, where others eventually tested positive for the virus. âWhen people gather and get infected, and infect those around them we see an exponential increase in cases, which is what you can see throug