A King County child died of complications from influenza in a Pierce County Hospital on Sunday, according to King County-Seattle Public Health.

It is the first reported death of a King County child from influenza since 2009.

Public health officials said the elementary school-age child was previously healthy. They wouldn't provide any other details, and a spokesperson for Tacoma-based hospital chain Multicare did not respond to requests for comment.

"This is a really tragic reminder of how serious influenza infections can be,” Jeff Duchin with Public Health Seattle-King County said at a press conference on Wednesday. “This season, in particular, we’re seeing a virus that’s impacting children particularly hard."

Flu season kicked off early in Washington this year, with cases starting to spike by mid-November, and with a type of influenza — a strain of “B/Victoria” virus — that we haven't seen in many years, according to Duchin.

Duchin said this strain of flu is unlikely to kill an otherwise healthy person, but it can happen.