Festival That Smash Mouth, Trapt + More Played Has First Covid Death
There's a reason many states are still advising against large gatherings, but South Dakota still held its annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally this summer. As of late August, hundreds of attendees had tested positive for Covid-19, and now the first death has been linked to the event as well.
Among the bands who performed throughout the festival were Smash Mouth, Trapt, Buckcherry, Fozzy, Drowning Pool, Quiet Riot, Adelitas Way, Night Ranger and more. Videos began circulating shortly after Smash Mouth's performance of the massive crowd that formed during their set, where hardly anyone wore masks.
The New York Times reports that a man from Minnesota is the first known to have died from the coronavirus after attending the Sturgis rally. State officials confirmed that he was in his 60s and did have previous health conditions. He was hospitalized for a few weeks before he died.
Shortly after the festival, South Dakota's Meade County had only positive 71 cases. As of Sept. 1, there are over 300. The entire state of South Dakota tallied over 2,000 new cases in the last week. “I won’t be changing my recommendations that I can see in the near future,” Governor Kristi Noem declared. “I think this is where we expected to be. None of this is a surprise, and we will continue to evaluate and see what the future looks like.”
The South Dakota State Fair is scheduled to take place in Huron throughout Labor Day Weekend.
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