Title
A MOTION affirming the King County executive's proclamation of emergency in response to the COVID-19 cases in King County.
Body
WHEREAS, the novel coronavirus first appeared in people in Wuhan, China, in December 2019, and
WHEREAS, public health - Seattle & King County activated the Public Health Departmental Emergency Operations Center on January 21, 2020, for a significant health emergency caused by novel coronavirus, and
WHEREAS, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport is one of the eleven airports in the United States to receive and process travelers from the region where the COVID-19 outbreak originated, and
WHEREAS, the first case of COVID-19 identified in the United States occurred in January in a Snohomish County resident who had traveled to China, and cases have since been spread through community transmission in Snohomish and King counties, and
WHEREAS, as of March 2, 2020, eighteen people in Washington state have been diagnosed with and six people have died from COVID-19, and
WHEREAS, according to Seattle's Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, new COVID-19 cases are likely to double every six days, and
WHEREAS, the emergency may become a pandemic, and
WHEREAS, Governor Jay Inslee declared a state of emergency in response to the new cases of COVID-19 in Washington state on February 29, 2020, and
WHEREAS, the King County executive issued a proclamation of emergency on March 1, 2020, in order to exercise the executive's emergency powers, and
WHEREAS, the executive announced initial plans to house patients without homes, included the immediate purchase of an area motel and the placement of modular housing units;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT MOVED by the Council of King County:
We affirm the King County executive's proclamation of emergency issued on
March 1, 2020, and affirm our commitment to aiding in the response to COVID-19.