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State health officials reported Friday night that there was a “fast-growing outbreak” of the B117 UK COVID-19 variant in the southwestern Twin Cities.
The Minnesota Department of Health says there was a 62% increase in COVID cases in Carver County between February 24 and March 4, and the British variant – which scientists say is more transmissible than the original SARS-CoV-2 strain – play a role in that rise.
MDH further states that it has detected ‘at least’ 68 cases of COVID-19 linked to participants in ‘school and club sports activities, including hockey, wrestling, basketball, alpine skiing and other sports.’
As a result, there has been an increase in cases at gyms and fitness centers in Carver County, linking contact persons to sports-related matters.
MDH says it recommends a ‘rural break’ in youth sports for two weeks from Monday as a result, as well as ‘active performance, weekly testing of athletes and coaches, no pre-match / post-match events.’
The department also recommends that Carver County Schools consider interrupting extracurricular activities where full distance cannot be maintained, and local gyms should strictly enforce mask rules, disrupt group classes, and actively investigate employees for COVID symptoms.
Genome sequencing on some of the samples infected by those infected during the outbreak has confirmed 24 cases of the B117 variant since 28 January, the largest group of the variant found so far, while a further 18 people with COVID has been linked to people with the B117 variant and is currently awaiting a sequence of results to determine if they also have the variant.
The variant was found in “athletes, coaches, students and household contacts,” says MDH, and “several schools, both public and private, have confirmed cases related to the cases of the variation.”
According to the department, many people with the B117 variant went to school or attended sports activities while being contagious. The call from MDH was that youth athletes and parents ‘had to double down’ on preventing the spread of the virus.
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The cessation of youth sports was lifted in January amid declining numbers, but players still have to wear masks despite efforts to recall the requirement of activist group Let Them Play MN.
“We are making progress in ending this pandemic, but we need all Minnesotans to keep their hats off until the job is done,” said Jan Malcolm, Minnesota’s health commissioner.
“The variants that are currently being spread have a greater risk that we may see a new increase in cases, and that we all need to do our part to prevent this from happening. This means masking, social distance, to to stay home when you are sick and to be tested if applicable. “