Washington state refuses help from unvaccinated county workers to clear snow affecting supply chain

The Washington State Department of Transportation denied help from one county to clean up a "freak winter storm" because it does not mandate employee vaccinations. 

"Washington State informed Kittitas County they could not accept this assistance due to Kittitas County not mandating the COVID-19 vaccination for County employees. The Kittitas County Board of Commissioners is extremely disappointed with the States’ position to refuse assistance," a press release from Kittitas County on Wednesday states. 

The county received significant snowfall over Jan. 5 and 6, which was described as a "freak winter storm" by local outlet KHQ. The storm forced the Snoqualmie Pass to close for over 90 hours and some supply chain issues were subsequently reported, according to the outlet.

The county offered assistance to the Washington State Department of Transportation to clean up state roads on Jan. 11 but was subsequently denied over lack of vaccine mandate.