One recent meet-and-greet with the North Pole’s most famous family this year turned out to be potentially dangerous amid the pandemic. At a mall photo-op and parade on Thursday, Dec. 10 in Long County, Georgia, it looks like Santa may have exposed up to 50 children to COVID-19 after the Clauses tested positive the Saturday two days after the event, according to NBC News. The Clauses didn’t exhibit symptoms on the day of the meet-and-greet. In a statement, Robert D. Parker, the chairman of the Long County Board of Commissioners, wrote, “While this is cause for concern, I feel that it is important to note that exposures happen every day as we go about our day to day lives, often without any knowledge,” in an effort to probably downplay the virus, console the understandably concerned family and community members. However, Parker added that he “still stand[s] by the decision of the Chamber to move forward with these holiday traditions, and to bring some sense of normalcy to these trying times.” While many are experiencing so-called “pandemic fatigue” as we approach the end of 2020, it’s important to remember that COVID-19 is still surging across the country and that events such as holiday meet-and-greets could become potential sites of transmission especially if folks are not socially distancing or wearing masks. As of Wednesday, Dec. 16, the U.S. has seen more than 16.8 million total COVID-19 cases and over 300,000 deaths, according to The New York Times. Georgia has reported over 530,000 total COVID-19 cases, and Long County has reported 383 local cases.
