An indoor wedding in Maine that violated capacity restrictions is believed to be responsible for 147 coronavirus cases and 3 deaths.
The wedding took place on Aug. 7 in the small town of Millinocket at Tri-Town Baptist Church.
It is unclear how many people attended the wedding, but 65 people attended the reception at Big Moose Inn.
The state’s capacity restrictions for social gatherings is 50 people.
The venue owner admitted that they misunderstood the local capacity rules.
The coronavirus outbreak is believed to have spread to 3 surrounding towns, and there is a fourth town being investigated.
By the last week of August 53 cases had been confirmed to be directly related to the wedding.
On August 31 the number rose to 123 cases, by September 2 the number rose to 134 cases, and as of Friday the number was 147 cases.
Maine CDC spokesperson Robert Long confirmed on NBC News that the 3 deaths related to the outbreak were individuals that didn’t attend the wedding.
83 year-old Theresa Dentremont passed on August 21 after contracting the virus second-hand.
Her husband 97-year-old Frank Dentremont also contracted the virus, but he made a full recovery.
The identity of the other 2 victims have not been revealed.
The York County Jail, the Maple Crest Rehabilitation Center, & Calvary Baptist Churh are all confirmed locations that the virus spread to.
The owner of the Big Moose Inn released a statement last week explaining their misinterpretation of the capacity restriction rules.
They believed since they had separate rooms for dining and outdoor seating that their capacity was 80 people.
They were wrong.
There has been no confirmed fines or violations issued to the Big Moose Inn.
For your personal safety, please wear your mask & practice your social distancing.
