With the pandemic intensifying, Gov. Jay Inslee on Thursday appealed to Washingtonians to forego traditional Thanksgiving gatherings to help slow the spread of COVID-19 and save lives.<\/p>\n
The governor said he will be announcing “some further restrictions” on activities as soon as next week.<\/p>\n
“We are in as dangerous a position today as we were in March,” Inslee said Thursday evening in a televised address from his private office at the Capitol. “Every single day matters. We cannot wait until our hospital halls are filled with gurneys before we take decisive actions.”<\/p>\n
With his wife, Trudi, at his side, the governor urged residents to refrain from social gatherings — from football watch parties to Thanksgiving dinners — because get-togethers are fuel for the latest surge of cases across the state.<\/p>\n
“Simply put, we have to rethink these holidays so that we may be thankful when we don’t lose more lives to COVID,” he said. “This is the good news. We’re only going to have to do this once.”<\/p>\n
With a vaccine on the way, this should be the only year families and friends are apart on Thanksgiving, Inslee said.<\/p>\n
“We will get back to normal,” he said. “The cavalry is on the way, but we need to keep people alive until it gets here.”<\/p>\n
Health experts have long said social gatherings, large and small, are fueling a spike in cases.<\/p>\n
“Holding gatherings is a threat to all. Stop it,” the Snohomish Health District said in a video Thursday. “Plain and simple: stop the gatherings.”<\/p>\n
The health district recommends celebrating Thanksgiving only with members of your immediate household<\/a>.<\/p>\n