Anyone from Kansas who traveled to the Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri, over Memorial Day weekend and did not use protective measures should voluntarily self-quarantine for 14 days, according to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.
Photos of large crowds not wearing masks and not socially distancing at pool parties and bars at the Lake of the Ozarks over the holiday weekend have been widely published throughout the nation, sparking reaction from health officials.
Known as a vacation spot for Kansas City area and St. Louis area residents, the Lake of the Ozarks attracted large crowds over the holiday weekend.
Today, the Kansas secretary of health urged people who traveled there without using protective measures such as masks and six feet of social distancing to self-quarantine.
“The reckless behavior displayed during this weekend risks setting our community back substantially for the progress we’ve already made in slowing the spread of COVID-19,” Dr. Lee Norman, KDHE secretary, said in a news release. “If you traveled to Lake of the Ozarks over the weekend, we urge you to act responsibly and self-quarantine to protect your neighbors, co-workers and family.”
While Lake of the Ozarks is not currently on the Kansas mandated travel list, KDHE urges those who traveled over the Memorial Day weekend to self-quarantine for 14 days upon return to Kansas, according to the KDHE statement.
At a news conference Tuesday morning from the University of Kansas Health System, Dr. Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infection prevention and control at KU Health System, said his first reaction was that the gathering at the Lake of the Ozarks was irresponsible.
There are ways to be social with families, and that includes being outside with social distancing, he said.
“We know that COVID likes to find susceptible hosts. We know it’s very easy to spread from one person to another when there are people close to one another. So that’s a very concerning aspect,” he said.
Dr. Hawkinson said he thought self-quarantining for those who attended crowded swimming parties was a good request. He said personal responsibility for that part might not happen.
“That is why, moving forward, especially wearing masks will be important,” Dr. Hawkinson said, especially if people are presymptomatic and asymptomatic. Masks will help cut down risk if people are not going to be self-isolating and self-quarantining, he added.
Contact tracing will be important, he said. Some county health departments have been overwhelmed and have a lack of resources, he added. In addition, what’s important will be the ability to get tests and test people who are presymptomatic, asymptomatic or have symptoms, he said.
Dr. Steve Stites, chief medical officer for the KU Health System, said for people who were there, the way they can keep other people safe now is to wear a mask. If they’re around others, they need to make sure people around them wear a mask, he added.
“Hopefully, folks will wake up the day after and think, maybe I didn’t make the best choices right then,” Dr. Stites said. “And then they’ll take it a little more seriously.”
When people go home and are around their parents and grandparents, those relatives are the ones who are going to be at risk, he said. There may be deaths in the younger population, but it’s concentrated in the older population, he added.
Dr. Hawkinson said even if only 2 to 5 percent of the population have COVID-19, if there 2 to 5 percent are in that crowd, it can spread exponentially.
“I don’t think the sun, the pool and the alcohol are going to prevent the spread of the virus,” Dr. Stites said.
The doctors also discussed reopening the University of Kansas campus and restarting sports, and what would be necessary to do that.
Dr. Douglas Girod, KU chancellor, said at the news conference that they are planning to reopen slowly and safely. Some really large gatherings of people may not be able to happen, he said.
They are making plans for reopening, but he said they realize those plans can change from week to week, based on new information that becomes available. They are planning to reopen in a safe way.
Dr. Girod said KU is ramping up its capability for testing on campus. Contact tracing will be important particularly in the dorms, he said.
The university plans to open face-to-face, he said, but if something happens in the fall like what happened in the spring, they might have to shift again. The university used remote learning in the spring.
Jeff Long, KU athletic director, said at the news conference that they have a timeline for reopening. Although it is all subject to change depending on circumstances, they are planning to let the first group of student athletes return to voluntary workouts at KU facilities on June 15; the rest of fall sports on July 1; and men’s and women’s basketball students on July 15.
When student athletes return, they will be wearing masks, he said.
Dr. Stites said that people may just be tired of staying at home and want to go back to normal, but it is not the time for events such as swimming parties. He recommended that people wear a mask, stay six feet apart from others, cough in their elbows and stay home when sick.
Dr. Hawkinson reported 20 COVID-19 patients at KU Health System on Tuesday, down from 24 on Friday. There were six patients in the intensive care unit, with three on ventilators, he said.
The Wyandotte County COVID-19 webpage today reported 1,272 cases, at 11:55 a.m. May 26. There were 72 deaths, up from 1,255 cases reported Saturday. There was one more death than Saturday.
The KU doctors’ news conference is at https://www.facebook.com/kuhospital/videos/301551934340833/?v=301551934340833.
The UG’s COVID-19 information page is at https://alpha.wycokck.org/Coronavirus-COVID-19-Information.
Wyandotte County is under the state’s Phase 2 plan at covid.ks.gov.
The state plan’s frequently asked questions page is at https://covid.ks.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Reopening-FAQ_5.19.2020_Final.pdf.
The state has an information page about what activities are safe on Memorial Day weekend, at https://covid.ks.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Safe-Memorial-Day-Guidance-5.19_Final.pdf.
Additional guidelines from the governor’s office about Phase 2 are at https://www.wycokck.org/WycoKCK/media/Health-Department/Documents/Communicable%20Disease/COVID19/AdAstraUpdate519.pdf.
Test sites are listed at https://wyandotte-county-covid-19-hub-unifiedgov.hub.arcgis.com/pages/what-to-do-if-you-think-you-have-covid-19.
The CDC’s COVID-19 web page is at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html.