Former North Bend councilmember shares COVID-19 story after members of Canadian ski trip test positive

The City of North Bend recently announced in early March, North Bend resident and former Councilmember Trevor Kostanich was exposed to COVID-19 after flying with a group of skiers and snowboarders to a remote of mountain area of British Columbia.

Two days after returning from the week-long trip, Kostanich got a call notifying him that a female from his 12-member group had tested positive for COVID-19.

He began showing symptoms a week later in the form of fatigue, congestion and body aches, but had no fever or respiratory issues.

Kostanich said if this woman hadn’t quickly informed group members of her positive test, they might have ignored possible symptoms, thinking they just had a cold.

All group members self-quarantined immediately and let others they had been in contact with know of their exposure to help prevent further transmission.

Kostanich said so far three members of the group have tested positive for COVID-19 and two others are awaiting results. Nine of the 12 group members have shown COVID-19 symptoms like fatigue, fever, body aches and coughing.

Trevor was not tested for COVID-19. His doctor advised against it based on his mild symptoms and due to the lack of testing resources at the time. He has been symptom free since March 28th and said he is feeling good.

The City of North Bend said, “Although Kostanich and most in his group have not been confirmed with COVID-19, their story is a good reminder of how easily and quickly a virus such as this can spread from one person to another. The average age of the group was mid 40s and they were all fit, active and otherwise healthy, proving that the illness does not only affect high-risk groups or any specific age group.”

Kostanich’s advice to the community is to respect the stay at home initiative and understand that this virus spreads quickly through people of all ages, with all people experiencing symptoms differently.

He added, “Some people show mild symptoms, some show none even though they are carrying the virus while others’ symptoms are much more serious.”

Kostanich believes current confirmed cases are likely much higher than reported and encouraged everyone to stay home to stay safe.

According to King County Public Health, as of March 31st, 11 North Bend residents (zip code 98045) had tested positive for COVID-19, with another 145 test results coming back negative. In nearby Snoqualmie (zip code 98065) 16 people had tested positive with 142 negative test results.

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