A 72-person COVID-19 outbreak at a cycling studio in Canada


Following the Covid-19 protocol, indoor cycling classes at Spinco Fitness Studio have reported coronavirus outbreaks in at least 72 people in Nantario, Canada, public health officials said. As many as 100 staff, customers and family members have been evacuated, according to a CNN report.



Bicycle rider: A 72-person Covid-19 outbreak at a cycling studio in Canada - find out what's here


© Getty / Graderies
A 72-person COVID-19 outbreak at a cycling studio in Canada – find out what’s here

In a statement to CMN, Elizabeth Richardson, MD, Hamilton’s medical officer, said the Spinko studio reopened in Hamilton, Nantario, in July and was complying with coronavirus safety regulations. This includes screening staff and attendees, pre- and post-masking classes, and room cleaning within 30 minutes after class and after class. According to city officials, Spinko was also working at half capacity and maintained a space of six feet around each bike.

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“We took all the measures offered by the public health, added a few and still the epidemic struck us again,” the studio wrote on Instagram. The outbreak appears to have been linked to classes held from September 28 to October 4, and Sparco Hamilton has stopped short of recognizing the epidemic. Among the affirmative positive cases associated with the studio are 47 primary cases (45 patrons and two staff members) and 25 secondary cases, indicating a “domestic spread” among family, friends or other contacts.

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Concerns have been raised about indoor workout classes supporting potential coronavirus transmission, but this appears to be one of the largest related outbreaks so far. Officials are particularly concerned because the facility follows health protocols closely. According to CNN, on October 13, D. Ric. “We continue to see what that means, what we need to understand about exercise classes,” Richardson told a media briefing.

Lance Merr, PhD, an airborne transmission specialist and professor of engineering at Virginia Tech, noted on Twitter that the protocol Effective ventilation does not seem to be needed In the studio – an increasingly decisive factor considering the possibility of airborne spread of the virus. “Six feet is not enough,” he wrote. “Health check-ups at the gym, cleaning, before and after class masks, 50% capacity and around 6 ‘each bike. Nothing about ventilation.”

According to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), a public health spokesman said that, despite adherence to protocol, the size of the outbreak would “potentially contribute to moving forward in the guidelines and practice.”

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