Another measles outbreak spreads, this time in Seattle area

May 21, 2019 / 2:20 pm

caption: In this photo taken Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2013, a biplane hangs from the ceiling of the Gina Marie Lindsey Arrivals Hall at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in SeaTac, Wash.

A seventh person was diagnosed with measles on Tuesday.

It brings the total number of new, local cases to seven — four in King County, two in Pierce, and one in Snohomish County.

The newest case is a woman in her 30s who lives in King County and appears to work at Hudson Alki Bakery Store, Sea-Tac International Airport. She visited Valley Family Medicine in Renton on May 14 and May 15.

This is Washington state’s second measles outbreak. The first outbreak, in February, was mostly confined to Clark County. This current outbreak started on May 9 and has centered around Sea-Tac Airport.

Measles is highly contagious. First symptoms are typically fever, diarrhea, or rash. The virus can stay in the air for up to two hours after someone with measles leaves the area.

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Paige Browning
Newscaster

Paige hosts midday newscasts and monitors news of significance to the Puget Sound region. She hopped over Washington’s mountains to join KUOW, after hosting news and reporting at Spokane Public Radio since 2011. She began her start in radio while a journalism student at University of Montana, by sharing stories with KUFM. Paige was raised in the mountains and rivers around Spokane. In her spare time she cheers on the Mariners in the summer, and hopes for snow in the winter.
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