For all these mini events resulting in dozens of cases – church revivals, bars opening and teens partying – there must be countless more that we never hear about. That’s why I like to talk about them, because I want to remind people that you can still get infected when you hang out with friends without wearing masks. People Magazine is reporting that there are 24 infections now being traced to a wedding attended by 65 people on August 7. 11 days later, the Maine CDC announced that 18 people at the wedding tested positive and that they spread it to others. Here’s part of People’s story:
An outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) linked to a wedding reception with about 65 guests is under investigation in Maine.
The state’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention announced that the outbreak is associated with a wedding reception that was held at the Big Moose Inn in Millinocket, Maine, on August 7.
Of 24 people that tested positive for COVID-19, 18 had attended the reception, and six people later had close contact with attendees. While the Maine CDC said that everyone who had tested positive was a Maine resident, it was unclear if any guests of the reception or those working at the wedding were from out of state.
“Anyone who attended an event at Big Moose Inn on August 7, 2020, and who has symptoms of COVID-19 should call their health care provider before seeking medical care,” the Maine CDC said in a press release…
The Maine CDC is still investigating to determine whether the reception took place indoors or outdoors. If the gathering took place outdoors, it would have been in adherence with state guidelines, which allow up to 100 people to gather outside, WMTW reported. Only 50 people are allowed indoors.
50 people indoors is still way too many! These rules are so ridiculously lax,. The Maine CDC launched this investigation. So many other states have tons of spreader invents like this and aren’t doing jack to contact trace and remind people not to gather in groups. Consider all the people who traveled to South Dakota for the Sturgis bike rally who have surely contracted the virus. Do you think the North Dakota CDC is going to do any work that illuminates what a clusterf-k that event was?
I have to tell on myself – I hung out with one person, outside, socially distanced without a mask and I got strep throat afterwards. (I tested negative for COVID.) This is after months of staying home, wearing a mask to the store and using plenty of hand sanitizer. I’m so grateful it wasn’t worse and I definitely learned a lesson. It just reminded me NOT to go to the picnic my friends were throwing. They’re not all going to be wearing masks I know them. I miss them, but I probably won’t see them in person for at least six months to a year. These small family and friend gatherings really are spreading the virus and they’re not worth it.
Photos credit: Jonathan Borba, Asad Photo Maldives, Tembela Bohle and Emma Bauso via Pexels
I was invited to my niece’s bday party this coming Sunday. It’s outside, so I did consider it. Not many people, just family (allegedly, I don’t really trust my SIL to tell the truth, she is 100% capable of pretending surprise and “oh they just dropped by i didn’t even know they were coming!). BUT…I know they are all Trumpsters. Her family is, and my brother is like the biggest cultist, and they don’t wear masks. So, even tho it’s outside and I might be able to keep myself safe, I’m like, why would I put myself through this stress? So I said no i’m not coming. I sent my niece flowers and a gift.
I also bailed on a family gathering. It was supposed to be just about 15 of us, but a handful of the 40-50yr olds who were going have been posting anti max, COVID hoax nonsense of Facebook for the months. So no thank you. The only relative I’ve seen is my younger brother who has been taking all these precautions extremely seriously and barely leaves his house.
Good move, Darla. Not only playing it safe from Covid-19, but avoiding Trump supporters. Your mental health is at stake, too.
A good friend of mine has been flying all around the country, going to his gym regularly, going to restaurants, and wanted to visit us when he was in our town recently. I told him we’d have to wait until the pandemic is under control. I can’t risk this after all the precautions we’ve been taking. I really can’t believe he’s acting like it’s business as usual. I also have a SIL who is a retired nurse and she’s hosting parties at her house – outside, no masks. Unbelievable.
You made the right choice! Unfortunately we do need to consider who we’re hanging out with and what their political leanings are/how seriously they are taking this. I have a friend who spends a lot of time with her MAGA parents and as much as I miss her, I’m scared to see her knowing she has so much exposure to people who likely aren’t wearing masks and taking this seriously. I won’t go to my hair salon because I have a sneaking suspicion the younger set of stylists are all still hanging out together and having parties, not taking it seriously. Etc., etc. It’s unfortunate but we have to be so vigilant in vetting the people we see.
I have to have someone I don’t know in my house to do something mandated by my homeowner’s association. I’m SO freaked out by it because I can’t vet this person the way I do people in my own life.
I feel this, Darla. My brother is having a birthday party for his 3 year old today. They will be outside, which is at least something. But he’s older (had kids super late in life) and has had some health issues, so I’m worried. I just made him promise to at least wear a mask if he’s coming within 6 feet of anyone. That’s all I can do…I can’t control other people’s behavior (wish I could!!) so I have to let it go and hope for the best. It’s…not easy.
Also avoided my nephew’s graduation party this past weekend. It was outside but I don’t know where his friends or friends of his immediate family have been. Their outdoor space isn’t huge either. He and his friends are all headed to college this week too. Have a party and then move into a dorm. Does not sound good.
People have to learn the hard way I guess.
I live in maine and it’s not great here. Stores stopped requiring masks or customer limits. Loads of out of state plates are also not observing proper care. People are coughing near others.
It just isn’t being reported.
I can’t understand this. I can’t understand why we’d stop a mask requirement or customer limits in the middle of a pandemic. Boggles the mind.
I’ve been on vacation in Maine the last two weeks, and that’s definitely what I have seen. I always wear my mask on the few occasions I’ve had to go out in public, but I feel like I’m the only one who does.
Fellow Mainer here and there is *zero* enforcement of mask-wearing and social distancing in my very touristy area. I’ve even gotten comments about my mask on the rare occasions I venture out. Shout out to Gov. Mills and Dr. Nirav Shah for coming down fast and hard on contact/cluster tracing and response transparency from the very beginning, though.
Mills has been great from the start. People are just looking for a reason to throw a tantrum and call it just being a mainer.
I live in Maine too. I’m on the coast and tourists are EVERYWHERE. They think they’re escaping “hot spots” by coming here but they’re not quarantining and bringing their out of state germs/covid. It was only a matter of time until this happened and it’s going to get wayyyy worse cause Maine wants to stay as open as possible due to the hospitality revenue. I might as well be in Vegas or Florida at this point, probably safer.
I’m a Canadian from Nova Scotia. Bangor trips in the summer are a must do for me and my friends. Since the US/Canadian border is still closed to non-essential travel….that’s not happening this year. I know that Maine has lower Covid-19 numbers than the rest of the US. But it spreads so fast when people are not vigilant!
Also my 2 week trip to Florida for March 2021 is probably not going to happen! 🙁
Stay safe everyone! I miss Ulta soo much!
WigletWatcher. I am in MA and there have been multiple posts on our community board asking about where they can get quick covid tests, as they want to go to Maine and apparently, Maine asks that you have a negative test,or quarantine before coming.
The number of people who said “don’t bother, no one asks to see it” or “I just had to sign something that SAID I had a negative test” was *astounding*. So many people saying they have been multiple times.
Great, keep on going on multiple vacations and don’t bother even trying to follow the guidelines and we will NEVER see this virus go away. My In Laws are doing the same thing. I am constantly seeing maskless photos of my nieces with various other maskless kids. So far none of them have gotten sick, and I’m glad, but I also think that makes them assume what they are doing is fine. This is compounded by my industry being strongly hit, so now i am starting to really dislike people because I feel like my company is going to go belly up because they had to go to Maine 3 times in one summer and not a wear a GD mask! In the meantime, it was my understanding that Maine had very low cases, and now a bunch of maskless Massholes are going to drive up their numbers.
Turtle dove
The travel cautions do say maine requires all these things and nope… like you said. Zero enforcement. Not even at the airport.
I understand no one can find those quick tests and not all can quarantine, but then is the travel to maine even necessary? If nothing else why can’t we all just wear a mask and use sanitizers? Why is this a bridge too far?
One of my mom’s friends was going to Maine for vacation, so got tested – and tested positive. Had to cancel her plans. If she hadn’t been tested, she could have spread infection who knows where.
Fortunately she’s fine, had minimal symptoms. But you just never know.
Wearing masks is smart, absolutely. However , I’m wondering if we’re weakening our immune systems by practicing so much isolation and antibacterial hand-washing.
Does anyone here know about this?
These are really good questions to ask, things we need to think about. I’ll try to answer as best I can.
1. Wearing masks is smart because of the weight of evidence that shows they reduce transmission of the virus by a significant amount. They keep us from spreading the virus, especially when we’re close (inside and outside). By screening out some virus even when some gets through to the wearer, they may prevent more serious cases by reducing “viral load” on our immune system. So they’re smart and we’re smart to wear them.
2. Social isolation is known to be hard on the immune system Unfortunately, physical distance is the #1 best way to avoid spreading the virus (followed by masks, handwashing etc.). So we’re making a trade-off as a society and trying to figure out other ways to support our immune systems – through virtual connections and phone calls and distanced, very small, outdoor visits; through exercising, eating well and getting enough sleep; by doing enriching things and laughing; through maintaining connection with our doctors; through finding someway to help others where we live (or political action! a sense of control aids immunity). If the potential consequences of infection were equal to the potential consequences of lower immunity, and if the virus weren’t so contagious (we lack herd immunity), then we as individuals could make individual decisions. But the potential consequences can be really bad and/or really long-lasting … and we spread it to others so easily, especially when we still feel good. So we’re all going to need to figure out how to keep up our immunity through other ways. I am going to look into the phone check-in programs with older adults: Older people living alone are incredibly vulnerable, emotionally and physically.
On the plus side, I haven’t had a head cold since last winter! Being away from others carrying that milder coronovirus has still been the key factor, even if my immunity should be down.
3. Hand sanitizers already entered the water supply before COVID and of course it’s a problem. Feh. Political action to strengthen clean-water regulation, people. : ) Also, antibacterial gels/wipes kill bacteria, but not virus. Some materials are anti-viral, but read labels carefully. Look out for the bogus and dangerous hand-sanitizers (look up FDA recalls) that use the wrong kind of alcohol. The good alcohol-based sanitizers use only as needed — soap and warm water for 20 seconds is the most environmentally friendly way to wash your hands. And it’s so simple (and kinder to your nails).
Thanks! I guess this means that we can expect a resurgence of the sniffles and upset tummies when this is all over.
You’re welcome. Could be … though if we become more of a mask-wearing, hand-washing culture in the West, it could reduce the spread of colds and flu.
Upset tummies are so often likely to be food poisoning. We have to push for strong regulation of food processing and restaurant inspection. We need clean water. Things like the norovirus … for that, hand washing and other strict infection controls, especially in group settings.
I read an article (in a legitimate publication) that all the sanitizing of surfaces with strong cleaners will actually help the more resistant bacteria flourish since we’re essentially clearing the decks of all the weaker competition, which will give the really scary stuff room to grow and thrive. That information gave me bad dreams for a few days, but I don’t see an alternative.
I’m curious when I see this question of “weakening our immune system” because of our recently adopted behavior of taking precautions during a pandemic.
I would love to hear from someone with the proper background address this. How does one weaken their immune system by wearing a mask, social distancing, washing their hands (or sanitizing if you can’t wash)?
It is my understanding that we have an acquired and innate immune system that shouldn’t be significantly weakened by 6 months to a year of the behavior we’ve adapted to slow the spread of a deadly pandemic.
If you have a health issue that needs a doctor’s care and you don’t get it treated because you are avoiding going out to the doctor – that I understand is deleterious to your health. Any medical or health-science person want to weigh in?
These are excellent questions and this is an important question.
We probably need to differentiate between a normally healthy immune system and temporary or fluctuating levels of immunity – for example, the way it gets worse when we’re “run down” or “burn the candle at both ends” – chronic stress, burnout, not enough sleep, eating poorly, feeling lonely etc. The immune system responds to factors like these in a measurable way. Those of us who “come down with colds” after moving house, or at the end of exam week, know this phenomenon well.
Masks wouldn’t weaken immunity, or we’d have seen a lot of low-immunity doctors and nurses long before now. Hand-washing: Same. Just makes clean hands. Social distancing per se wouldn’t weaken immunity – just from standing a safe distance apart from someone, out of doors.
But, as we’re social creatures, being inside and not being/feeling connected to the people in our lives, not being able to hug or get that human touch, that is known to affect our immune system at least for the duration. Thus the importance of being outside as much as possible, and enjoying those connections (from a safe distance) that way. I’m in Canada and we are dreading the shorter days and colder weather. Getting in those backyard visits as much as possible before we have to go back into our mole-caves.
The question of how much social isolation suppresses immunity and for how long — well, we’re getting a great situation for some long-term research now, but first we’d have to be able to test people’s stress hormones and do some bloodwork, and that’s a little tough in this contagion. Rest assured that someone out there is trying to figure it out!
Could you clarify your question? My current reading of the phrase “weakening our immune system” in reference to covid immediately brings to mind the theories of building herd immunity, which have generally failed as a matter of public health policy. Covid is well known at this point as a virus which can, and often does, cause an overwhelming immune response where the body attacks itself (the cytokine storm triggered in the lungs). I haven’t stayed current with the recent literature, but last I read, there has been significant debate as to whether having covid confers permanent immunity.
Short term… i wouldn’t think so. Antibacterial related “super bugs” are really only when you’re constantly exposed to them in an infection control setting. You’re not in an infectious disease ward.
And the mask isn’t worn 24/7 with full ppe gear. You’re exposed to germs. Your immune system is active. It’s just precautions specific to covid and how it spreads. To lessen contraction chances.
So I know they said that if it was held outside it adhered to guidelines, but what will happen if the CDC discovers it was held inside? I’m not familiar with the penalty. I hope it’s significant enough to deter others.
We have a big screened in porch in our backyard, and that’s how we’ve been seeing people. Nobody we choose to see would want to go inside! It’s funny how you have to pick who you trust. But we’re outside, at least six feet apart. We’re only seeing friends we know are sitting at home like us, being careful. It can comfortably seat 10, but our max right now is 6, including us. The only exception to “our friends are home 99% of the time” is a jlyocouple who are an ER doctor and ER nurse. They’d never dream of coming inside our home, but they came over for a meal on the porch with us. That porch has been a real godsend, we’re getting to have human contact about every two weeks. I don’t know what we’re going to do come winter, when we can’t use it, and we’re still isolating because people can’t continue to alter their lifestyles. UGH.
And we were planning to get married in Mexico in February. Our plans aren’t set, but they aren’t canceled either. I’m driving myself and my fiancé crazy with “what ifs”, when we’ve decided (because things can always turn around, although I don’t think they will) to wait until November to make a decision.
It is my understanding that our immune systems are created as children. Wearing masks/hand washing is not going to impact an adult to the same extent as it may a young child whose immune system is still developing. This is one of the reasons that has me keeping my kids home when school is to resume in a few weeks.
Masks and handwashing protect people of all ages from infection.
It’s true that children are still developing their immune systems. At the same time, their cases appear – on average! – to be milder than cases in adults. But some can still get very sick, and some of those poor kids can die. On the population level, doctors are studying how efficiently kids can spread the virus to adults – who may become sicker if infected, despite their more well-developed immunity. And the fact that immunity gets weaker with age is one big reason why older adults are dying in much greater numbers from COVID. (They also are more likely to have diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and other conditions that further weaken them.)
It’s complicated. I don’t envy any parent having to make this decision, and feel for the parents who must work – helping take care of sick people, delivering our food and our parcels, just being at the front lines generally – and can’t afford to keep their kids home.
The whole thing has revealed so much injustice and inequity.
Let me just preface this by saying I always wear my mask indoors at stores etc and I do not believe covid is a hoax. That being said, I’ve been enjoying my summer as much as possible given the conditions, going to the beach and outdoor restaurants ( never inside) etc. Most people I know are doing the same and are fine. People who are getting sick keep claiming it’s the 1 time they left their house. Maybe staying holed up inside for 6 months without human interaction isn’t healthy for your immune system?
The beach is indeed a great place to be right now, the virus has a hard time finding another human target when there’s lots of movement of open air.
Most people you know are doing the same “and are fine” but some of them may carry the virus and be asymptomatic. Always remember that is one of the devilish distinctions about this particular virus: asymptomatic cases, asymptomatic spread.
People who get it “that one time they left their house” – that requires more study. I would think that for some of these people, there were more exposures than they recognized (or would admit to). I’ll bet Public Health epidemiologists want to take a good hard look at their stories. Not that they’re lying per se, but these people might have selective memory for what they did up to a week prior than feeling sick.
Please see my lengthy comment higher in the thread about the impact of social isolation on the immune system.
A lot of people don’t live near a beach and don’t have access to outdoor dining. And some may have the level of chronic disease or immuno-compromise that they can’t take chances. MANY people live with and take care of older relatives and really can’t take a chance.
It’s great that you can “get on with your summer” and thank you for wearing masks indoors, but not everyone has those options.
Finally, some people are health professionals and they won’t eat out of doors because they may have been exposed at work, and don’t want to expose the servers to the virus. There are millions of people working in health-care settings.
This story was about an intentional social gathering that clearly violated public-health guidelines, not about whether people know how to get on with things in face of the pandemic. We need to not shame people for being cautious about a disease they know could compromise or kill them or their loved ones.
Thanks for your measured comments. When I said getting on with my summer, I meant as much as possible in this situation. Beach and a few outdoor meals ( probably about 5-6x total since end of June) . Trust me I’m not out partying lol. I wasn’t shaming anyone, just generally curious if the people who really have not even left their houses to go to the grocery store or something since March are going to be worse off in the long run. Obviously like you said that requires more study.
@whoAREthesepeople – thank you for your measured and intelligent responses in this post!
Honestly, maybe this is just me, but I usually assume people are lying when they say they got sick the one time they left their house. Maybe they meant the one time they dined indoors, or the one time they took their mask off in a store, but probably not the first time they left their house.
And thank you Becks1 because I do work hard at it!
I assume the same thing about people who got it “the first time they left the house.” It might not be that they actively took a risk, or even that they are lying, but obviously something happened. People even forget that “the cleaning lady” comes in or a contractor had to fix something, stuff like that. We’re so used to people being in and out of our spheres as part of our routines. It’s very easy to slip and become exposed.
We knew someone who got COVID in New York City in April-May who “never left the house” and thought it was from pizza delivery. Who knows? At that time, they might not have been masked, been too close to an infected/unmasked delivery agent, there was a lot of virus on the box. Impossible to tell. OR, they went out and forgot, or got in the elevator with someone, or who knows? The virus was rampant then.
whoarethesepeople
I’m enjoying all your responses also!
A few weeks ago, I mentioned an oncology nurse neighbor who had a big 4th of July indoor/outdoor party at her home. There were well over a dozen people outside their family in attendance for hours.
Guess what? Her entire household came down with the virus within two weeks of the 4th. Hopefully none of her patients taking treatments (or other innocents) were exposed before she realized she was sick. Her husband admits that she likely did not contract the virus at work, due to stringent PPE.
Currently our other neighbor (nursing home employee) is positive and quarantined with symptoms. Her irresponsible spouse should be quarantined as well, but is going out several times per day (as is his usual “road runner” pattern).
It’s infuriating to see how selfish and irresponsible some people are.
An oncology nurse? Someone who treats the immuno-suppressed? Her hospital would be within its rights to fire her stupid, stupid ass.
I do wonder how she explained her illness to her employer.
Sadly, she is not an anomaly where I live. Some medical employees seem the most dismissive and careless, which is sad and scary.
Thanks for reporting this; it’s so important to remind people that even our “safe” behavior is spreading the infection. If we cannot get beyond this nationwide hygiene theater that we have deluded ourselves into believing, then we are dooming ourselves to this dumb virus forever. The science behind the virus has progressed so much since March, and still the media just regurgitates the same tired “guidelines” that are so watered down they’d be laughable if they weren’t deadly.
I urge anyone who hasn’t to read the latest reports on spread through ventilation systems and steps that can be done to reduce those risks (the Atlantic has a great article on this, entitled We Need To Talk About Ventilation).
Indoor spaces are dangerous, period. Outdoor gatherings are okay, but if people stand around a picnic table to make their plates, or kids are playing together in the pool, or have to go inside to use the bathroom, then you’re back to square one. Masks are important, EVERYONE should be wearing a mask indoors even if you are socially distant from others, but take off the mask to eat or drink and you immediately open up the surrounding air flow to your potential infection.
Taking someone’s temperature before entering a building does absolutely nothing – we know about asymptomatic spread, and yet restaurants, schools, and companies across the country are still taking people’s temperatures like it’s doing something. If an employee shows up all week and does not have a temperature Monday through Thursday but develops one Friday, then congrats! They’ve already potentially infected everyone due to the incubation period prior to the onset of symptoms. Temp checks are really only effective when combined with hardcore contact tracing (to catch those who may have been exposed prior to that onset), which we are not doing to anywhere near the extent needed to actually be effective.
Also, six feet is the minimum guideline, and it’s based on STANDING STILL. If people near you are walking, then the distance should be more than that, and even more if you’re running. Think about the one-way lanes in the grocery stores – if you’re not careful, you’re literally walking in the wake of the people in front of you. Combine that with people who wear their masks loose, meaning air flow is escaping through the top and/or sides, and you see how these basic guidelines are the absolute bare minimum to what we should be doing.
Thanks for explaining all of these important facts, especially the part about temperature checks. A substantial proportion of hospitalized COVID patients did not have fever. Even symptomatic people might not have fever. These temperature checks are “performative” and our doctors in Ontario say they have zero protective benefit. Stores use them, airports use them, they have to look as if they’re doing something. But — eh, they’re not useful. If they catch a few people with fevers, great, but the odds are people with fevers are not running out to the store.
Chances are that your strep throat was not acquired during your meeting with a friend. I found this article really useful to explain those instances where people are coming down with (non-Covid) illnesses even though they had kept in isolation: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/24/parenting/virus-kids-sick-quarantine-infection.html
This makes a lot of sense and I appreciate it a lot. It did serve as a warning to me but you’re right I could have just come down with something.
YEP. Apparently I’m a strep-carrier who can get sick off her own stash. Fabulous. (I learned this during the first months of Covid.)
@Celebitchy I hope you are feeling better now. I am heartbroken that my sister is getting married in two weeks and I will probably not attend because of Covid concerns. I don’t know why she is hell-bent on getting married this year. And even though there will only be around 20 people at the wedding, I don’t feel confident enough to go because I always have to come back to my husband and kids and I would hate for them to get it from me. I have been very depressed these last few days ( going back and forth, should I go, should I not go…) because I realize that this is a very important milestone in her life and she feels that way but she should also understand that she is putting my parents at risk who are pushing 70, and my uncle and aunt who are even older. Not to mention her in-laws.
Thank you for reporting on this because we need to remind ourselves what our priorities are.
It sounds as if you’re doing the right thing and will find other ways to celebrate – at a distance now and in person later.
I know how you feel Ana. My cousin is getting married and was planning before covid. I live in a different state than my family and I was really looking forward to seeing everyone. Then covid hit. She just announced that she’s planning on going through with it in March 2021! I feel like that is the worst time!! We’ll either be in the midst of another wave or still stuck in this one!! There is no way I’m flying during this. I’m bummed I won’t get to see everyone.
I got married 5 weeks ago. We had a date planned, but there was no way we could know even a postponed date would work.
Long story short we had immediate family only with 1 of them ordained via online at our home with yard… with masks.
It worked out great. You just can’t chance it.
My brother is getting married in October of THIS YEAR. He says they chopped the guest list from 150 to 50 people. If I don’t go I guarantee he will have a complete meltdown. I don’t know what I’m gonna do.
Let him melt and then get over it?
My best friend constantly asks to come over. She sees so many people in a week—she thinks she’s being careful, but she’s hanging out with all our friends, plus dating (!)—and I have multiple chronic conditions that put me well beyond the high-risk category. I feel like I’d have to get sick and die for her to understand how in-danger I might be, but I also feel like a complete fearmongering a**hole every time I act like my health is in question. We live in Northern California, so she’s been able to get multiple tests, and each time they come back negative. But I’m still terrified. Yet I feel like such a dick! My willpower is wearing down.