KTLA

Person with coronavirus attends Mother’s Day church service, exposes 180 in Butte County

A microscope image shows 2019-nCoV, the virus that causes COVID-19, isolated from a patient in the U.S. (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)

After a person who attended an in-person religious service on Mother’s Day tested positive for the novel coronavirus, public health officials in Butte County issued a strongly worded warning to residents not to speed too quickly through the reopening process.

The person received a positive test result the day after the service, which had more than 180 attendees, officials said Friday in a news release.

Gatherings of any size remain prohibited, even in counties that are reopening more quickly than the rest of California. But the organization that held the service chose to open its doors despite the rules, exposing the entire congregation to the coronavirus, officials said.

“This decision comes at a cost of many hours and a financial burden to respond effectively to slow or stop the spread of COVID-19,” the release said, noting that health officials are working to notify all those who attended the service and instruct them to self-quarantine. The county health department also is working with healthcare partners to obtain testing for all attendees, officials said.

Read the full story on LATimes.com.