MediterraneanGrocery Wholesalers in Seattle, WA

Washington state has seen some of its highest rates of coronavirus recently, but the picture is starting to change. KUOW’s Paige Browning brought Kim Malcolm this update.

This interview has been edited for clarity.

Kim Malcolm: Let's start with where the numbers stand right now. How many people have the virus?

Paige Browning: The most recent estimate statewide is that 88,000 people are currently positive statewide. That’s one of the highest rates of the pandemic, but the surge may have slowed down since then. Cases were down 20% in King County in the last week. Rates are still staggeringly high, but we may be on our way out of omicron’s worst grip.

We know that hospitalizations and deaths lag behind spikes in cases in the data. What are you seeing there?

It appears the rolling seven-day average of hospitalizations is also starting to come down in the last week, but it's still higher than it was in the previous peak in the fall statewide. It is going to be tough for hospitals for a few more weeks. There's just no other way to say it.

This has been a hard month for people losing loved ones to Covid. The rate of deaths has increased in the last week by 126% in King County. That means four people are dying each day from the disease.

Is there a light at the end of this tunnel yet?

If we're not tapering off yet, we could be very soon. We're getting that prediction from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, based at the University of Washington.

Epidemiologist Ali H. Mokdad says the peak of omicron transmission will occur in nearly every country within the next two to three weeks. South Africa, the UK, even New York City have already tapered off in omicron cases. Our stats are starting to look like we may have passed our peak of omicron in King County.

We have been hearing a lot about schools being sidelined by Covid. Why are there so many cases in schools right now in Seattle and around Washington?

Case rates went up everywhere after the holidays in Washington. Schools were not immune to that. We’re dealing with a very transmissible virus in the community. In Seattle Public Schools, 2,600 people have Covid this month already. That's almost double the number for all of fall semester. There was also a bigger effort on testing this month than in the fall, so some people think that could have turned up more cases than we would have known about otherwise.

And speaking of testing, exciting news today, people can order free test kits in the mail. How do we do it?

Every household in the U.S. can order up to four tests, the rapid kind. They'll be sent through the U.S. Postal Service starting in late January. People will hopefully get their tests within seven to 12 days of submitting an order. We'll see if that timeline stays on track.

You order the free Covid tests at www.covidtests.gov.

Listen to the interview by clicking the play button above.

Washington’s coastlines experienced only minor surges Saturday from a tsunami triggered by a spectacular underwater eruption in the South Pacific.

Waves of 1 foot or less were measured at sites from Westport and Neah Bay on the outer coast, to Port Angeles on the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Neah Bay, at the state’s northwesternmost corner, registered a 1.1-foot surge.

The impacts were more dramatic in a few places along the West Coast, especially Santa Cruz, California, where rushing water swamped boats in the harbor and flooded the surrounding area. Waves exceeded 4 feet at Port San Luis, south of Monterey. In some parts of Alaska’s Aleutian Islands the tsunami reached 3.3 feet.

Shortly after the early morning eruption off the coast of the Pacific nation of Tonga, the National Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami advisory for the entire U.S. West Coast, warning that waves of 1 to 3 feet would sweep northward for several hours.

The advisory for the Washington and Oregon coasts was canceled shortly before 5 p.m.

Some of the first waves to hit the Washington coast surged ashore on the Long Beach Peninsula at about 8:30 a.m., but Scott McDougall, emergency-management director for Pacific County, described them as “subtle.”

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“To the best of my knowledge, we had no damage whatsoever,” he said late Saturday afternoon.

In a Facebook post, an observer at nearby Cape Disappointment State Park described rapidly breaking waves that were larger than usual. “The water seemed unsettled and almost “jiggly.”

Sandra Hollenbeck, who has a home near the jetty in Ocean Shores, said the waves were a bit more fierce than usual — especially for a windless day. “It was definitely some pretty big, breaking waves,” but never posed a threat to roads or homes.

King County’s Emergency Management Department issued an alert warning residents to avoid beaches and waterfront areas because of the possibility of strong waves and currents. But impacts in Puget Sound proved to be minimal.

The event marked the first Pacific-wide tsunami warning from a volcanic eruption instead of an earthquake, said Harold Tobin, director of the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network at the University of Washington. In fact, the only other volcanic outburst to trigger such wide-ranging tsunamis was the 1883 eruption on the Indonesian island of Krakatau, he said.

And the submarine Tongan volcano that exploded Saturday may not be done, Tobin cautioned. “There’s a possibility it could have another bigger, small or similar-sized eruption in the coming days, weeks, months or years.”

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Despite the unusual nature of the event, the tsunami-warning system worked well, Tobin added. The advisory was issued quickly and communicated widely.

At least some local alert systems also met the test. Pacific County sent out 17,000 reverse 911 messages via text, email and phones, to residents living closest to the shore, McDougall said. The messages explained that the impacts would be limited to the immediate beach area and advised people not to evacuate.

Many residents posting on the Eye of the Storm Pacific County Facebook page said the text and phone messages came through quickly, though others said they received no notification or experienced glitches.

While Washington was unscathed this time, the tsunami advisory is a reminder of the region’s vulnerable position and geologically volatile nature. “Events like this (advisory) really help us wake up and consider the possibility of a more locally generated earthquake event — the big one,” Tobin said.

An earthquake on the offshore Cascadia Subduction Zone could trigger massive tsunamis that crash into the coast within 10 to 15 minutes after the ground stops shaking.

People in areas with no high ground, like parts of the Long Beach Peninsula and Ocean Shores, would be hard-pressed to evacuate in time. A recent analysis by Washington’s Emergency Management Division estimates the state needs to build at least 58 vertical evacuation structures — either towers, berms or tsunami-resistant buildings — to ensure coastal residents can escape the high water.

At least 36 state school buildings are also in tsunami zones.

Sandi Doughton: 206-464-2491 or [email protected]; on Twitter: @SandiDoughton.

More than 100 concrete workers demonstrated outside of Seattle's AGC Headquarters building on Wednesday morning, demanding better worker rights.

SEATTLE — More than 100 concrete workers demonstrated outside of Seattle's AGC Headquarters building Wednesday morning demanding better worker rights, as some head into their third month on strike.

"They're saying we don't want to get to the table and talk," said demonstrator Sean Stott, "That's simply not true. We [have been] trying to get to the table to talk for a couple of months. We have the owners of the company flying over to Italy for Christmas while we're out on strike."

Over 300 concrete workers have been on strike and workers said they want to go back.

"Trying to get talks, trying to get this resolved, we just want to get back to work," Stott said.

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Teamsters Local No. 174, the union representing workers, said construction companies are trying to force a package on workers that would be significantly less compared to what other construction workers are receiving. Wages, healthcare and retirement would decrease in compensation over the next three, when taking inflation into consideration.

A harsh impact of the strike is Seattle's halt on construction, with vital concrete workers on strike. However, a union spokesperson said workers' hands are tied.

"We don't want to be out here, this is miserable," said Jamie Fleming, director of communications and research for Teamsters Local No. 174. "This is not a fun time being on strike, we want this to be over as soon as possible and we are willing to do anything to get back to the table and make that happen."

The Washington State Department of Transportation, the city of Seattle and King County are warning if the strike continues, this could delay critical ongoing projects including the construction of roads, bridges, light rail guideways and more.

However, workers said they are just asking for equity and the same benefits other construction workers in the city are being offered.

"We have to fight for what's right, we have to fight for decent wages and decent living and the fact that they want to give us a lesser contract is just not right, it's just not happening," said Stott.

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The National Tsunami Warning Center issued an advisory for coastal areas across the West after a major volcanic eruption near Tonga.

WASHINGTON — Washington's coastal areas were included in a tsunami advisory issued early Saturday after a massive underwater volcanic eruption in the South Pacific, near the islands of Tonga. An undersea volcano erupted just before 8:30 p.m. Friday, and satellite images shared by the National Weather Service showed it was easily visible from space.

The National Tsunami Warning Center issued a broad advisory early Saturday for coastlines stretching from Alaska down to the Mexican border. In Washington, the advisory applies to the entire outer coast and coastal areas along the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the San Juan Islands.

The earliest waves resulting from the eruption were projected to arrive just after 8:30 a.m. in Long Beach and just before 10 a.m. in Port Townsend. Wave heights could range between 1 and 3 feet for several hours, forecasters said.

The National Weather Service's Seattle office said people living in or visiting the areas under the advisory should stay off beaches and away from harbors and marinas. While forecasters are not expecting severe impacts locally, they warn hazards can persist for hours after the first waves arrive.

"Tsunami advisories mean that a tsunami capable of producing strong currents or waves dangerous to persons in or very near the water is expected or already occurring," Saturday's advisory read. "Areas in the advisory should not expect widespread inundation. Tsunamis are a series of waves dangerous many hours after initial arrival time. The first wave may not be the largest."

Although Saturday's advisory did not apply directly to Puget Sound, the National Weather Service said forecasters could not rule out strong waves and currents impacting any shoreline, including those situated along Puget Sound and the Salish Sea. Officials in King and Snohomish counties sent out wireless emergency alerts out of an abundance of caution.

"Tsunami warning sirens in Edmonds and Everett are unlikely to be activated today," Snohomish County's emergency management department wrote. "Still, our advice: Be safe. Avoid Puget Sound beaches [and] waterfront areas."

The state's Emergency Management Division echoed the need for ongoing caution around all coastlines and shorelines in a social media post shared shortly after 10 a.m.

The full text of the advisory, including estimated arrival times up and down the West Coast, is available on the National Weather Service website.