Wildhorse casino closes after employee tests positive for coronavirus

Update: Wildhorse casino reopens after worker was infected with coronavirus

A person who works at Wildhorse Resort and Casino just east of Pendleton is believed to have coronavirus.

The casino was expected to temporarily close for sanitization starting at noon Monday.

The person also attended a youth basketball game Saturday in the small Oregon town of Weston.

The adult, who lives in Umatilla County, is now hospitalized in Walla Walla for treatment of coronavirus.

It is now the third presumptive positive case of COVID-19 among Oregon residents, according to Oregon health officials.

The gender of the patient was not released in a news release from the Oregon Health Authority.

The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, which owns the casino, has canceled all community event on its reservation through Saturday.

It also was closing its Nixyaawii Community School, Head Start, daycare and senior center until their facilities can be fully sanitized.

“State and local health officials are moving quickly to contact people who may have been in close contact with the individual who tested as a presumptive positive case,” according to a statement from the Oregon Health Authority.

“The third case is not linked to travel to a part of the world with known cases of COVID-19,” it said. “It is considered a case of community transmission.”

The infected person was at a game Saturday in the Weston Middle School gymnasium in Weston, Ore.

“This was not a school event, it was community use of the gym,” the Athena-Weston School District posted on its website.

Weston is 60 miles from Pasco, and just south of Milton-Freewater. The town’s population is about 650.

School district officials have since closed that gym to conduct a deep cleaning.

The gym, at 205 E. Wallace St., is detached from the rest of the school and health officials say they do not consider the separate school building to pose any risk of exposure.

Other basketball game spectators are being considered “low-risk” exposures since they were in a closed environment with the infected person, according to federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.

The test on the sample was performed by Washington’s public health laboratory.

The case was one of Oregon’s pending cases. Oregon health officials are updating their case and testing reports on OHA’s COVID-19 web page.

Health experts in both Oregon and Washington state are said to be working together to determine where else this person may have interacted with people in recent days, after their coronavirus symptoms first appeared.

The news release says officials will announce if there are any additional locations where people may have been exposed from this patient.

Both participants and spectators from Saturday’s basketball game in Weston are encouraged to call the following numbers if they have questions:

▪ 211 for Oregon residents

▪ 509-524-2647 in Walla Walla County

▪ 800-525-0127, press #, for the Washington State Department of Health

Most people who have tested positive for the coronavirus are said to have mild symptoms.

People who are feeling sick with mild symptoms and do not need to seek medical care are being encouraged to stay home while recovering.

Those who are ill and in need of care should call ahead to the doctor’s office so arrangements can be made to prevent exposing others

Call 911 for urgent medical needs.

Health officials remind people to take everyday precautions to prevent the spread of many respiratory illnesses, including COVID-19 and influenza.

▪ Cover your coughs and sneezes with a tissue and then throw the tissue in the trash.

▪ Wash your hands often with soap and water for 20 seconds. If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol.

▪ Avoid close contact with people who are sick.

▪ Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands.

▪ Clean and disinfect surfaces that are often touched.

▪ Take care of your health overall. Staying current on your vaccinations, including flu vaccine, eating well and exercising all help your body stay resilient.

▪ Consult CDC’s travel website for any travel advisories and steps to protect yourself if you plan to travel outside of the US.

For more information:

▪ OHA Emerging Respiratory Disease page: www.healthoregon.org/coronavirus

▪ Washington Department of Health: https://www.doh.wa.gov/Emergencies/Coronavirus

▪ CDC COVID-19 page: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html

▪ CDC travel notice: https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/notices

▪ WHO page: https://www.who.int/westernpacific/emergencies/novel-coronavirus

This story was originally published March 2, 2020 at 11:38 AM with the headline "Wildhorse casino closes after employee tests positive for coronavirus."