WASHINGTON, March 2, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – The second fatality from the novel
coronavirus on US soil has been confirmed, health officials said Sunday.
The man, who died Saturday, was in his 70s and had “underlying health
conditions,” according to the public health office in King County, Washington
state.
The death occurred Saturday in King County, the most populous in the state
and home to Seattle, a city of more than 700,000 people.
It is the second death in both Washington state and King County. The first
victim, who died earlier Saturday, was in his 50s and also had “underlying
health conditions,” according to Jeff Duchin, public health officer for
Seattle and King County.
The first victim was one of a handful with no known links to global hot
zones to have contracted the virus — indicating that the pathogen was now
likely spreading in communities.