6 people associated with Lexington St. Paddy’s Day Party have caught the coronavirus
At least six people associated with a St. Patrick’s Day Party in Lexington have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, the Lexington-Fayette County Health Department said.
Kevin Hall, a spokesman for the health department, said the health department is not aware of how many of the people who have tested positive attended the party. He said “associated with“ means they either attended or were in contact with someone who attended.
None of the six people have been hospitalized and it was not the “coronavirus party” Gov. Andy Beshear referred to in his daily press conference Tuesday. The “coronavirus party” did not take place in Lexington and was not an intentional attempt to expose people to the virus.
The Herald-Leader first reported Tuesday that at least one person had tested positive after attending a small party in Lexington and that at least two more people who tested positive Wednesday could be traced back to the party.
Beshear closed down bars and restaurants to in-person traffic on March 16, after many people continued to go out to celebrate St. Paddy’s Day the weekend before. Beshear has continued to urge people to stay away from large crowds, asking mayors and county judge-executives across the state to shut down public parks if they see people gathering in large groups.
Beshear said anyone who attends a party because they think they are “indestructable” is putting other people’s lives at risk.
“We are battling for the health and the lives of our parents and our grandparents,” Beshear said. “Don’t be callous as to intentionally go to something and expose yourself to something that will hurt other people. We ought to be much better than that.”
This story was originally published March 27, 2020 at 11:15 AM.
