Kentucky county sees surge in COVID-19 cases tied to attendance at basketball games
A health department in Eastern Kentucky reported Wednesday afternoon that it had been “overwhelmed” with positive COVID-19 case reports in the last 24 hours and pointed to recent basketball games as the source.
The Harlan County Health Department said in a Facebook post that it was reviewing more than 200 case reports that had not been reported publicly.
Based on information from positive cases, two sporting events have been identified as “super-spreader events,” the health department said.
It cited the boys basketball game between the Harlan Independent and Barbourville schools on Jan. 11, and the Harlan Independent vs. Harlan County boys and girls basketball games on Jan. 15.
The department asked people who attended the games to monitor themselves for COVID symptoms and take extra precautions to protect themselves and others.
It also posted information on quarantining if necessary. A person who has tested positive or thinks he or she has COVID-19 should stay home and isolate for five days, measured from the first day of the illness or the day of the test, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The health department also stressed the importance of wearing a mask “anywhere you are indoors,” hand sanitizing, practicing social distancing and getting vaccinated against COVID-19.
Representatives of the schools were not available for comment Thursday morning.
Harlan County Judge-Executive Dan Mosley said the health department didn’t have enough staff to quickly contact everyone who tested positive after the ball games, so wanted to alert people to monitor for COVID symptoms and get tested.
“They wanted to let the community know that we really need to be attentive to that,” Mosley said.
There are many people in the county with health conditions that would put them at higher risk if they contract the illness, Mosley said.
There were 27 deaths in the county between Oct. 1 and Dec. 29 attributed to COVID-19, and most of the people who died had not been vaccinated, Mosley said.
