The Kittitas County Incident Management Team has not received a response regarding our county’s application for a variance to enter Phase 2 at this time. The response from the state could come this week.
That response could be approval, denial, or a request for more planning details, so we ask everyone to prepare for entering Phase 2 at this time.
Phase 2 includes the following:
- If you are pregnant, over 60 years old, or immunocompromised, you should stay home even in Phase 2.
- Do not go to crowded places for recreation. If you see ten cars at the trailhead, then go somewhere else.
- Do not travel to other counties to go shopping. Stay in Kittitas County and support your local businesses.
- Businesses must have a safety plan. As a customer, ensure businesses that you patronize have their safety plan in place.
- Talk to your “5 people outside of your household now” about how to prevent any spread of disease.
In phase 2, people are able to recreate and gather with 5 people outside of their household per week from Kittitas County only. You can start talking to those people now to establish ground rules within your group. You should have an expectation that friends will not join you if they are sick or if they’ve been around someone who is sick. Masks should continue to be worn. Extra safety measures can be taken, such as carrying hand sanitizer at all times and taking temperatures prior to visiting with those 5 trusted people.
If you have in-home services that restart such as housecleaning or a nanny, you should include that individual in your group of five. You should do the same with a hairdresser. We are asking that people are extra cautious about the number of people they interact with, which will control the spread of COVID-19 .
Businesses are required to have safety plans and may request technical assistance via https://www.co.kittitas.wa.us/response/202003-covid19/business-safety.aspx and businesses that have questions about whether they can operate during Phase 2 may contact Washington State via
Questions about your health should be directed to your local healthcare provider or you can call the Temporary COVID Clinic at KVH at 509-933-8850. For general COVID-19 questions, the Emergency Operation Center is at 509-933-8315 or 509-933-8305.
Kittitas County, from the Cascades to the Columbia, and online at