CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Mecklenburg County Health Department says more people have tested positive after they attended last month’s Mecktoberfest.
The health department urged the more than 1,000 people attended to get tested after two people tested positive.
Now, three more people have tested positive with a total of five people from the event, but officials can’t say those who tested positive got it at Mecktoberfest.
Thousands of people were there, but Mecklenburg County Health Director Gibbie Harris said only 135 people were tested so far.
“So, the expectation is there’s likely more positives from that, whether people are just not letting us know that that’s where they may have been or whether they’re asymptomatic and not being tested,” Harris said.
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Over the weekend, the health department and the brewery held a free COVID-19 testing event. Officials said they tested 135 people and 70% were people who attended Mecktoberfest, so fewer than 100 people.
Tuesday night, the founder of Olde Mecklenburg Brewery John Marrino defended the event. In a statement, he said they expected a smaller crowd, but thousands of people showed up.
He said most of the weekend was safe, and it was only a few hours when people ignored masks and social distancing rules.
He also said the brewery takes this situation very seriously and will learn from it.
During last week’s county commissioner meeting, Harris said the event was not considered a cluster, but there were thousands who attended and they are still waiting on test results from Saturday’s testing event.
She said many did not social distance and were not wearing masks.
“We’re right at that time frame where we expected to see positive tests and we’re starting to see them,” Harris said.
Video posted on Instagram from the second day of Mecktoberfest shows dozens of people singing and dancing -- with just one person wearing a mask. People can be seen closer than six feet from each other and others are walking around without masks.
Olde Mecklenburg Brewery wouldn’t take Channel 9′s questions last week about how it ran the event but sent the following statement:
“OMB has always and will continue to work diligently to ensure that we comply with and adhere to all county, state and national health regulations and recommendations. It is also perhaps the easiest place in town to enjoy a beer or a meal with friends while social distancing. If you are not sure and would like to see what a safe and enjoyable place OMB is we encourage you to visit and see for yourself.”
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Harris reiterated that she didn’t like what she saw in the videos on social media.
“There were thousands of people there," she said. "Very few masks and little-to-no social distancing. Those folks need to get tested.”
The county is currently averaging about 90 new COVID-19 cases a day, which is up slightly over the past two weeks, Harris said. 365 people have died from coronavirus in Mecklenburg County since the start of the pandemic.
Harris also said 26 nursing homes currently have outbreaks, but she called that a small victory since that’s the lowest number since July 12.
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