About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 4, 2020)
Tuesday, August 4,20201 GAINESVILLE, GEORGIA | gainesvilletimes.com Georgia Wine Producers putting on monthlong event to celebrate local wineries. life,sa Honestly Local Rabun camp linked to 260 virus cases CDC report shows significant spread of COVID-19 at overnight YMCA event in June BY NATHAN BERG nberg@gainesvilletimes.com At least 260 cases of COVID-19 have been linked to an overnight Georgia summer camp held in June, according to a CDC report released on Friday, July 31. Atlanta media sources have identified the camp as the YMCA’s Camp High Harbour in Rabun County, but neither the CDC nor the camp could be reacheto confirm those reports. Camp High Harbour has an office address in Gainesville. According to the report, the camp was closed on June 27 after a teenage staff member tested positive for COVID-19 on June 24. The Georgia Department of Public Health was notified of the situation on June 25, and recommended all attendees be tested and self-quar antine, isolating themselves if they received a positive test result. The CDC obtained test results for 344 of the 597 Georgia residents pres ent at the camp, with 260 of them, a little over 75%, coming back posi tive. Among children aged 6-10,51% of test results were positive. The posi tive test rate was 44% for those aged 11-17 and 33% for those aged 18-21. “These findings demonstrate that SARS-CoV-2 spread efficiently in a youth-centric overnight set ting, resulting in high attack rates among persons in all age groups, despite efforts by camp officials to implement most recommended strategies to prevent transmis sion,” the report said. Cloth masks were required for camp employees but not for camp ers. Windows and doors in camp buildings were not left open for increased ventilation. The report also notes that camp attendees were “cohorted by cabin and engaged in a variety of indoor and outdoor activities, including daily vigorous singing and cheering,” activ ities that “likely contributed to trans mission,” according to the report. According to the report, the camp adhered to all measures required in Georgia’s executive order allowing overnight camps to operate beginning on May 31. All trainees, staff members and camp ers were required to provide docu mentation of a negative COVID-19 test no more than 12 days before the start of the camp. “This investigation adds to the body of evidence demonstrating that children of all ages are suscep tible to SARS-CoV-2 infection and, contrary to early reports, might play an important role in trans mission. The multiple measures adopted by the camp were not suf ficient to prevent an outbreak in the context of substantial commu nity transmission,” the report said. Bridge work gearing up Photos by SCOTT ROGERS I The Times Traffic moves along the westbound Jerry Jackson Bridge over the Chattahoochee River Monday, Aug. 3. Work on the bridge ramps up this week with a traffic shift starting Tuesday and a lane closure later in the week. The bridge was built in 1956, as one of the original structures on Lake Lanier. It is 1,216 feet long and 31 feet wide. Man charged with murder after alleged false claim BY THOMAS HARTWELL thartwell@gainesvilletimes.com A Gainesville man is being charged with murder after police say he called 911 to report his girlfriend had shot herself. Gwinnett police say on July 22, 30-year-old Lawrence Gray called 911 to report that his girlfriend, Katlyn Head, 30, of Gainesville, shot her self while they were in a car together on Interstate 985 southbound in Buford. Homicide detectives responded to the scene to investigate, gathering evi dence and speaking to wit nesses, a news release says, and after an autopsy, the Gwinnett County Medi cal Examiner’s Office determined the manner of death was homicide. Police obtained a warrant for Gray’s arrest on July 31. ■ Please see GWINNETT, 6A Head Ga. 53 replacement to bring traffic shift, lane closure this week BY JEFF GILL jgill@gainesvilletimes.com Bridge replacement work gears up this week on Dawsonville Highway/Ga. 53 with a traffic shift planned for Tuesday, Aug. 4, and a lane closure Thursday-Fri- day, Aug. 6-7, according to the Georgia Department of Transportation. The traffic shift on the eastbound bridge over the Chattahoochee River in West Hall will be in place throughout the project, DOT district spokeswoman Katie Strickland said. The single-lane closure is set on the eastbound bridge from 11 p.m. Thurs day to about 5 a.m. Friday for a concrete pour, she said. The traffic shift and lane closure are weather dependent. The DOT is building a new, two-lane westbound Dawsonville Highway/Ga. 53 bridge, replacing the 64-year-old struc ture there now. The new bridge will be built between the eastbound and westbound bridges, with the old bridge torn down after the new bridge is completed and open to traf fic. The $20 million project is projected to be finished by July 2022. Work on the new bridge’s beams and the driving surface could start in March or April 2021, Strickland has said. Until next spring, “the majority of the work will be on the lake between the exist ing two bridges,” she said. “So, there will be minimal activity affecting traffic other than the traffic shift on the eastbound bridge.” The bridge’s replacement is part of an ongoing DOT effort to replace structures that date to Lake Lanier’s creation in the 1950s. Aqualand on Lanier sees storm damage Times staff reports Multiple docks and boats were damaged or destroyed at Aqualand Marina on Lake Lanier after a storm passed through Monday afternoon. Hall County Fire Services Division Chief Zach Brackett said no injuries were reported. Casey Ramsey of Hall County Emergency Management said reports of a tornado or waterspout could not be confirmed. “Something hit,” said Lu Treadway of the Lake Lanier Dwellers Facebook group. “There are tons of damage over there. ... People are still checking in (with damage) reports.” The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning shortly after 2 p.m. for the South Hall area. The alert ■ Please see AQUA, 6A This e-edition sponsored by:
