At least three deaths, 82 cases linked to coronavirus outbreak at North Carolina church events
A coronavirus outbreak linked to a week of events hosted by a church in North Carolina has left at least three people dead and another five hospitalized.
The United House of Prayer for All People in Charlotte held the annual series of convocation events, both indoor and outdoor, between Oct. 4 and 11. While officials have been unable to confirm the number of attendees, the Charlotte Observer reported there were gatherings ranging from 50 to 1,000 people.
Mecklenburg County Public Health officials in an update Thursday blamed the church for fueling what appears to be the largest COVID-19 outbreak in the region, so far infecting 82 people. Of those, eight are residents at a senior living community, Madison Saints Paradise South Senior Living.
Dr. Raynard Washington, Mecklenburg County’s Deputy Health Director, said earlier this week that the county was previously stable, but that has changed amid the recent outbreak, according to WCNC.
“You probably heard us say, two weeks ago, things were looking really good for us, but we told you it was fragile,” Washington said, noting the county’s daily cases have almost doubled in the last week.
“We’ve seen this happening really quickly — really quickly. A number of the hospitals in the counties around us have reached capacity, and they’re starting to divert patients from their county to Mecklenburg County."
Officials said they have already reached out to 131 close contacts of those infected at the events, 127 of whom have already been tested. They have also notified several local health departments in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, New Jersey and New York to monitor for potential cases connected to these events.
