Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


How Superspreaders - People and Places - Drive COVID-19 Pandemic

Steve Baragona

   WASHINGTON - A wedding reception in Maine led to nearly[1] 160 COVID-19
   cases. A [2]motorcycle rally in South Dakota spread the coronavirus to
   more than 230 people and perhaps as many as 250,000, according to one
   estimate.Meanwhile, house parties and bar nights in college towns
   across the country are sparking outbreaks that make public
   healthofficialswince.

   A few events are triggering a rash of coronavirus infections. These
   "superspreader" events seem to be on the rise, public health experts
   say. They worry that these events will seed outbreaks that ultimately
   reverse the overall downward trend in COVID-19 cases and deaths as
   summer winds down, temperatures cool and entertainment increasingly
   moves indoors.

   It is concerning, but not surprising, to see these superspreading
   events happening more often, said Michael Mina, an epidemiologist
   attheHarvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

   "Short of enacting martial law or something, we were always going to
   see people start to move back and try to create some sense of normalcy
   in their life again," he said. "I just wish we had been able to get the
   virus under control beforehand, before people got to this point where
   they just don't care anymore."

   The Maineevent

   For reasons that are not entirely understood, a small number of cases
   result in a disproportionate amount of infections. Thesepeopleare the
   so-calledsuperspreaders.

   About 65celebrantsattended a wedding reception at the Big Moose Inn in
   Millinocket, Maine, on August7.

   The inn was over capacity, and guests were not wearing masks, according
   to the state health inspector.

   One month later, three people are dead of COVID-19, and nearly 160
   cases have been traced to the event.

   Notably, none of the three fatalities attended the reception
   themselves. All contracted the coronavirus secondhand.

   It is a "perfect reminder of what can happen where there is a
   long-duration (indoor) event with a high number of individuals where
   mask-wearing was not the norm," Nirav Shah, [3]Maine Centers for
   Disease Control and Prevention director, said at a news conference
   Tuesday.

   That is also why public health officials consider the[4]Sturgis
   motorcycle rally,an annual event since 1938,a potential worst-case
   scenario.

References

   1. https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/infectious-disease/epi/airborne/coronavirus/index.shtml
   2. http://ftp.iza.org/dp13670.pdf
   3. https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/infectious-disease/epi/airborne/coronavirus/index.shtml
   4. https://rallysturgis.com/history

.