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Minn. officials expecting more COVID cases tied to Sturgis rally - StarTribune.com
"Thousands of people attended that event, and so it's very likely that we will see more transmission," said Kris Ehresmann, the state's director of infectious diseases
Fifteen Minnesotans who attended the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally this month have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, including one state resident hospitalized with COVID-19, state health officials say.
The Minnesota Department of Health received the first case report on Thursday and 14 more case reports on Friday, said Kris Ehresmann, the state’s director of infectious diseases, during a briefing Friday with reporters. Minnesotans who tested positive visited multiple campgrounds and bars at the South Dakota event, Ehresmann said, so cases apparently can’t be connected to any one location.
Seven residents of North Dakota also have cases connected to the Sturgis event, a government spokesman told the Star Tribune.
“Thousands of people attended that event, and so it’s very likely that we will see more transmission,” Ehresmann said.
The 10-day Sturgis Motorcycle Rally drew more than 460,000 vehicles this year, according to state officials. In the days leading up to the event near Rapid City, health officials in Minnesota expressed concern about the potential for the virus to spread at large indoor/outdoor gatherings like the Sturgis rally.
South Dakota officials, on the other hand, encouraged the event in a state that doesn’t mandate the use of masks. There have been fewer than 25 cases associated with the rally, said Rebecca Piroutek of the South Dakota Department of Health in an e-mail.
The department has issued three public health notices thus far for business exposures related to the rally, Piroutek said. Notices are issued, she said, when an individual is unable to identify people they were in close contact with while able to transmit the virus.
Word of cases linked to Sturgis came as Minnesota reported eight more deaths from COVID-19 and a relatively high number of newly confirmed infections.
The Health Department reported a net increase of 825 new coronavirus cases, according to data released Friday morning, on a volume of 18,815 completed tests. In the past week, the state averaged 630 new cases per day on a volume of about 17,300 tests.
About 4% of tests have been coming back positive this week, which is a lower rate than Gov. Tim Walz has suggested might trigger further restrictions to control the spread of the novel coronavirus. But health officials are cautious about the relatively high number of new cases among people infected in the community without a known exposure — another key measure.
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As expected, the Sturgis rally will become a mass spreading evnt.
"Thousands of people attended that event, and so it's very likely that we will see more transmission," said Kris Ehresmann, the state's director of infectious diseases
Fifteen Minnesotans who attended the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally this month have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, including one state resident hospitalized with COVID-19, state health officials say.
The Minnesota Department of Health received the first case report on Thursday and 14 more case reports on Friday, said Kris Ehresmann, the state’s director of infectious diseases, during a briefing Friday with reporters. Minnesotans who tested positive visited multiple campgrounds and bars at the South Dakota event, Ehresmann said, so cases apparently can’t be connected to any one location.
Seven residents of North Dakota also have cases connected to the Sturgis event, a government spokesman told the Star Tribune.
“Thousands of people attended that event, and so it’s very likely that we will see more transmission,” Ehresmann said.
The 10-day Sturgis Motorcycle Rally drew more than 460,000 vehicles this year, according to state officials. In the days leading up to the event near Rapid City, health officials in Minnesota expressed concern about the potential for the virus to spread at large indoor/outdoor gatherings like the Sturgis rally.
South Dakota officials, on the other hand, encouraged the event in a state that doesn’t mandate the use of masks. There have been fewer than 25 cases associated with the rally, said Rebecca Piroutek of the South Dakota Department of Health in an e-mail.
The department has issued three public health notices thus far for business exposures related to the rally, Piroutek said. Notices are issued, she said, when an individual is unable to identify people they were in close contact with while able to transmit the virus.
Word of cases linked to Sturgis came as Minnesota reported eight more deaths from COVID-19 and a relatively high number of newly confirmed infections.
The Health Department reported a net increase of 825 new coronavirus cases, according to data released Friday morning, on a volume of 18,815 completed tests. In the past week, the state averaged 630 new cases per day on a volume of about 17,300 tests.
About 4% of tests have been coming back positive this week, which is a lower rate than Gov. Tim Walz has suggested might trigger further restrictions to control the spread of the novel coronavirus. But health officials are cautious about the relatively high number of new cases among people infected in the community without a known exposure — another key measure.
=============================================================
As expected, the Sturgis rally will become a mass spreading evnt.
