Almost two weeks ago, the agency leading Washington state’s response to the coronavirus outbreak reassured Southwest Washington’s highest-ranking lawmaker.
Clark County, at the time home to nine positive cases of COVID-19 and three deaths, would move near the top of the list for resupplies of protective gear and testing kits.
“I would anticipate you would receive at least part of your order,” wrote Robert Ezelle, director of the Washington Military Department’s Emergency Management Division, in response to the question from U.S. Rep. Jamie Herrera Beutler, R-Washington.
That was March 21. Clark County by then had tested just 230 people. At the time, the county sought 6,500 test kits from the state.
Despite being placed as a priority on par with counties near Puget Sound — one of the earliest epicenters for COVID-19 — Clark County has received a fraction of the supplies it has requested.