Five new COVID-19 confirmed positive cases were announced late Monday, May 4, 2020. This brings the total of cases for Pacific County up to nine.
The ill individuals are self-isolating at home. Close contacts are being informed by public health nurses of the exposure and instructions to self-quarantine.
These new cases in Pacific County are part of the cases reported positive from Bornstein Seafood Company in Astoria, Oregon. Health officials say 13 employees tested positive and the processing facility is closed until further notice. Clatsop County Department of Public Health indicated that 35 employees were tested.
"This pretty clearly illustrates that the virus, if it is going to affect us [Pacific County], is going to come to us from out of the area," said Pacific County Emergency Management Agency Director Scott McDougall. "Here we have an example of it coming across the bridge from Astoria."
Can I get sick from eating meat produced in a processing plant where workers have COVID-19?
There is no evidence that the coronavirus can be spread through ingestion of meat from processing plants where workers have COVID-19, according to the FDA and the CDC.
COVID-19 is spread person-to-person through respiratory droplets from ill individuals. The virus is coughed or sneezed out and then transferred to the exposed person through the mouth, eyes, or nose. Research has determined that the virus can live on plastic for a couple of days, so by the time the meat package makes it into the grocery store the virus is dead.
It is best to handle meat normally, which means following the safety rules. Wash and disinfect all surfaces the raw meat touches. Wash your hands after handling raw meat.
Why are workers in meat packaging plants getting sick?
Many factors are at work in meat packaging plants during the COVID-19 crisis. The meat processing facilities are keeping up the regular practices, which keeps foodborne pathogens out of the meat, but with the close contact between workers it is hard to maintain social distancing in the plants. These workers have also been declared essential since they are an integral part of the food chain.