Flathead County Reports Five Additional COVID-19 Deaths

Five more Flathead County residents have died from COVID-19, according to the Flathead City-County Health Department, bringing the countywide total to 44 since the pandemic began.

The health department announced the deaths Monday afternoon. According to a press release, all five are associated with an unnamed long-term care facility. No additional information was provided.

The deaths mark a continued escalation in the scope and severity of the COVID-19 outbreak in Flathead County. Seventeen people are reported to have died from the virus since Nov. 20 — a stretch of just 18 days — and the county has averaged nearly 120 new infections per day since the start of November. More than 1,600 COVID cases are active in the county, according to the latest available data.

“We extend our heartfelt condolences to all loved ones,” Interim Health Officer Tamalee St. James Robinson wrote. “We continue to ask all Flathead residents to take the necessary preventative steps to protect our most vulnerable community members.”