Sturgis Motorcycle Rally returns, public health official worry again about COVID
FILE - In this Aug. 7, 2020, file photo, people congregate at One-Eyed Jack s Saloon during the 80th annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in Sturgis, S.D. The annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally refused to take 2020 off despite the threat of the coronavirus pandem
Massive event in South Dakota was one of the few public festivals to be held in 2020.
Posted: Aug 4, 2021 3:27 PM
Posted By: Mike Bunge
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) Crowds of bikers are rumbling their way towards South Dakota s Black Hills this week, raising fears that COVID-19 infections will be unleashed among the 700,000 people expected to show up at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.
Stephen Groves/AP
toggle caption Stephen Groves/AP
People fill a bar during the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota in August 2020. Stephen Groves/AP
While it s not clear how many cases can be blamed on last year s rally, it coincided with the start of a sharp increase across the Great Plains that ultimately crescendoed in a deadly winter.
The gathering could potentially power a fresh wave of infections like the one that is currently shattering hospitalization records in parts of the South, said Dr. Michael Osterholm, the director of the University of Minnesota s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy.
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