A Colorado ski resort has had a Covid-19 outbreak, with more than 100 active infections among its employees.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment announced the outbreak in Winter Park Resort in January, but released the data Wednesday in its weekly outbreak summary.
There are at least 109 employees with active infections, they said.
“It has been determined that these cases are not traced back to transmission through interaction with visitors, but rather to social gatherings outside the workplace and at joint housing,” officials in Grand County, Colorado said in a joint statement with Winter Park on Monday. Resort.
With the Colorado ski season in full swing, other resorts have also reported Covid-19 cases. But the Winter Park outbreak is currently the largest, according to data from CDPHE.
“We’ve been working closely with public health authorities since the start of the pandemic,” said Jen Miller, the ski area’s communications manager. “We went through extensive planning and had to get state clearance for our operations before we could open on December 3.”
Cases related to socialization and living situations: Most cases can be traced back to social gatherings outside of work and housing, Miller said.
Precautions, according to Miller, include: reconfiguration of elevator brackets and elevator loading procedures, additional personnel, new signage that reminds visitors of mask requirements, dining restrictions, a reservation system to manage the visit and number of people in the resort, contactless accommodation and a state-approved testing site for their 1,700 active employees.
But some visitors have reported that mask mandates were not being enforced.
When asked about those reports, Miller said, “We have done a lot of work and will continue to develop our business as needed. I cannot speak about one person’s experience, but we appreciate feedback and will continue to make changes. health and wellbeing of our employees, guests and community as our top priority. “
Conor Cahill, press secretary for Colorado Governor Jared Polis, said ski resorts across the state “need to plan and manage better work for peak weekends.”
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