COVID-19 Outbreak Impacts Hundreds, Linked To Bar Opening In Rural Illinois

Reopening a rural Illinois bar led to dozens of COVID-19 cases, which led to a school closure that impacted about 650 children and a hospitalization of a long-term care facility resident.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a report Monday (April 5). It states that at least 46 COVID-19 cases were linked to the opening event at the bar in February.

The Illinois Department of Public Health and the local health department investigated the outbreak, according to the CDC. Officials found that the outbreak included 26 customers, three staff members and 17 secondary cases.

“These findings demonstrate that opening up settings such as bars, where mask wearing and physical distancing are challenging, can increase the risk for community transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19,” the report reads.

The CDC recommended that businesses reopening during the pandemic should stress “a multicomponent approach,” including mask requirements, distancing, reducing capacity, emphasizing outdoor seating and more.

It wasn’t clear how many customers attended the opening event, but the bar can accommodate about 100 people, the report shows.

The CDC report also adds that the number of cases could have been greater because “many community members were reluctant” to disclose details during voluntary interviews. It’s also possible that some asymptomatic cases went unreported, among other possible “limitations.

“Bars can play a role in community spread of COVID-19 because of limited mask use while eating or drinking and lack of consistent physical distancing,” the report states. “These findings show that SARS-CoV-transmission originating in a business such as a bar not only affects the patrons and employees of the bar but can also affect an entire community.”

Read the full report here.

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