At least 260 staff members and campers tested positive for coronavirus at a sleep-away summer camp in Georgia.
According to reports, the camp took many precautionary steps to prevent an outbreak and required staff to wear masks.
But according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, many of the camp’s buildings didn’t have proper ventilation. ‘Relatively large’ group of children also slept in the same cabin where they played, cheered, and sang, likely allowing infected droplets to spread through the air.
Health officials said the findings give more evidence that children are suspecting to getting the virus.
In mid-June, the camp held an orientation for 138 trainees and 120 staff members.
Three senior staff members and 363 campers then joined the 250 employees on June 21. But a few days later, a teenage staff member developed chills and left the site.
The teen tested positive for coronavirus the next day, and the camp started to send people home. The state’s Department of Public Health was also alerted before the camp closed down on June 27.
Out of 597 staff members and campers, at least 260 tested positive for Covid-19. 51 percent of the infected campers were between ages 6 and 10.
While everyone submitted documents proving they had tested negative for the virus, campers were not required to wear masks, only staff members.
In addition, the report said that campers stayed in cabins that are not properly ventilated and joined “in a variety of indoor and outdoor activities, including daily vigorous singing and cheering.”
The CDC added: “Settings, like multi-day, overnight summer camps, pose a unique challenge when it comes to preventing the spread of infectious diseases, considering the amount of time campers and staff members spend in close proximity.”
Dr. Andrew Noymer, an epidemiologist, said to The Washington Post that the incident shows that schools shouldn’t reopen in the fall.
“To me, this is a significant weight added to the side of the scale that says close the schools,” he expressed.
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Replaced!