Coronavirus transmission through St. Louis County family is a ‘low-risk pathway’
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Missouri officials said Monday that transmission of coronavirus through contact with a St. Louis County family who didn’t follow instructions to quarantine themselves after they were exposed to someone with COVID-19 is a “low-risk pathway.”
A 20-year-old Ladue woman tested positive for the respiratory disease through a state test on Saturday after returning from a study abroad trip in Italy. Officials say they told her family Thursday, after she called the county’s hotline to report her symptoms, that they should isolate themselves at home.
The woman’s father and sister went to a father-daughter dinner and dance Saturday evening at the Ritz-Carlton in Clayton. Two schools have closed as a result.
The family reportedly hired a lawyer, who was quoted by St. Louis media outlets Monday as saying they were not told by health officials to self-quarantine.
St. Louis County Executive Sam Page said the family members have been isolating themselves at home since they learned of the 20-year-old woman’s diagnosis Saturday night. Page added that there’s no need to use a formal quarantine to legally require them to do so. He had suggested Sunday that the St. Louis County Public Health Department may use the official notice.
The family was given verbal instructions to stay home, according to Page. He referred to the “communication breakdown” as a lesson for everyone.
“I accept their explanation. I believe it to be true,” he said. “... This is the first time that we’ve heard that someone didn’t understand it clearly.”
Page said the woman’s father and sister don’t have symptoms, but they were asked to isolate themselves because people can be contagious a couple of days before they display symptoms. He added that the woman’s mother told officials she did not go out.
Officials are still collecting information on how many people came into contact with the father and sister.
“There was certainly a lapse in judgment here,” Page said, but he added that the community should “move forward and learn from it.”
He mentioned that the public has responded to the news of the quarantine violation with anger and concern. The county’s hotline received 375 calls on Monday alone. And police were patrolling the family’s home.
Meanwhile, state officials and others are still tracking the woman’s movements.
They don’t believe the people aboard a plane she flew on from Italy to Chicago are at risk. But they are trying to find out who she may have had contact with after her arrival at an Amtrak station in St. Louis.
Amtrak is also cleaning the train and stations in Chicago and St. Louis, as well as contacting everyone who rode the train with her.
BEHIND THE STORY
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Since its outbreak in December of 2019, the novel coronavirus has been diagnosed in at least 47 countries, including several confirmed cases in Illinois. The spread will continue, according to both the Centers for Disease Control and World Health Organization, since vaccines are still months away. The fatality rate in China, where coronavirus was initially diagnosed, is about 2.3%. That compares to about .1% worldwide for the flu. Additionally, the unchecked spread of illness causes disruptions to employers, health care systems and the economy. We hope this information encourages vigilance by our readers so that they can keep their families and communities safe and healthy.
