As predicted, coronavirus cases linked to South Dakota’s annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally continue to rise as bikers nationwide return home. As of this report, more than 260 cases and one death have been reported as connected to the rally. States began using contact tracing last month to determine if attendees brought the virus home with them. Officials from the Minnesota Department of Health were the first on Wednesday to report a COVID-19-related death linked to the event.
The department’s infectious-disease director, Kris Ehresmann, confirmed that the patient who died, a man in his 60s, had underlying health conditions and had been hospitalized for several weeks after returning from the rally. At least 50 cases in Minnesota have been traced back to Sturgis and many more are expected, officials said.
According to The Washington Post, epidemiologists believe the number of cases currently linked to the rally is undercounted. Not only are some rally participants refusing to test, but contact tracing also becomes more difficult with programs limited in some states. Ehresmann added that “[participants] have the potential to amplify transmission in multiple places” as they return to locations that may have a low number of cases.
The 10-day event, which began Aug.7, was attended by at least 400,000 individuals, most of them maskless (earlier reports estimated 250,000 in attendance). Data found that 61% of counties in the U.S. were visited by rally attendees. Daily Kos reported that by Aug. 27 at least 103 cases in at least eight states were linked to the event. Within a week, cases were reported in 12 states including South Dakota, which saw at least 100 cases connected to the rally, ABC News reported.
With the highest number of cases linked to the rally, South Dakota health officials are unsure how many people were infected or exposed to the virus at the event. According to officials, one case was linked to a person working at a Sturgis tattoo shop, while another was traced to an individual who spent hours at a bar during the rally. Notices have been posted at locations with potential COVID-19 exposures, in addition to testing being available for those who live in Sturgis.
But the burgeoning number of cases in South Dakota doesn’t seem to bother state Gov. Kristi Noem. Noem, a Trump supporter who has repeatedly spoken up against lockdowns and welcomed bikers from across the country to the state. South Dakota still does not have a statewide mandate requiring masks and Noem, despite the number of increasing cases, doesn’t plan to enact one. “We told those folks that have concerns that they can stay home, but those who want to come and join us, we'll be giving out free face masks, if they choose to wear one,” Noem said during an interview on Fox News. Prior to hosting the motorcycle rally, she hosted a Fourth of July event at Mount Rushmore during which she openly said: “We will not be socially distancing.”
As of this report, more than 6 million people in the U.S. have been infected by the novel coronavirus. At least 1,091 new coronavirus deaths and 44,027 new cases were reported on Sept.1., according to The New York Times database. With the clear disregard for safety regulations and refusal to test for COVID-19, cases and deaths linked to Sturgis are expected to increase nationwide.
