Health & Fitness
COVID Outbreak Linked To LBI Teen Nights Rises To 29 Cases
At least 29 COVID-19 cases have been linked to teen night clubs in Beach Haven, the Long Beach Island Health Department said Monday.
BEACH HAVEN, NJ — At least 29 COVID-19 cases have been linked to teen night clubs in Beach Haven, the Long Beach Island Health Department announced Monday.
The laboratory-confirmed cases have been linked to teen nights as recent as July 25 and 27, with several cases dating back to July 11. The locations of the teen nights were not released by the health department.
The community cluster first reported on Aug. 3 was classified as an outbreak on Thursday due to the increased number of reported cases that were all connected to teen nights in Beach Haven. Health officials noted that the recent number of cases also does not include reporting from out-of-town visitors.
Find out what's happening in Barnegat-Manahawkinfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
“There have also been numerous cases not counted in this statistic due to out of state or reporting limits,” the health department said.
Individuals have reported a range of mild to more significant COVID symptoms, according to health officials. To date, no reported hospitalizations or deaths have occurred.
Find out what's happening in Barnegat-Manahawkinfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Cases have not been isolated to just a few circles of friends, but also to people who share no other connection besides attending teen nights. Several cases involve teenagers from the same household, including some who attended the teen nights and some who did not.
“The immunization rate among all eligible age ranges and particularly teens and young adults needs to see a robust improvement if we have a chance to head of subsequent activity from this spike,” the department said. “In the short term, public health measures such as masking indoors and avoiding crowds are advised for everyone.”
As of Monday, all of New Jersey had "substantial" or "high" coronavirus transmission, triggering a recommendation by the CDC to mask up in indoor, public spaces.
Several South Jersey counties reported having "high" coronavirus transmission, including Ocean County. Read more: Masks Now Recommended In All 21 NJ Counties, CDC Says
Keep up to date with what's happening in your community by subscribing to your local Patch newsletter here.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
