TOPLINE

President Trump's campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, along with accompanying protests, "more than likely" contributed to an alarming spike in new coronavirus cases, Dr. Bruce Dart, Executive Director of the Tulsa Health Department, said Wednesday.

TULSA, OKLAHOMA - JUNE 20: U.S. President Donald Trump points to his shoe as he speaks at a ... [+]

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KEY FACTS

266 new cases of Covid-19 were reported on Wednesday in Tulsa, breaking the one-day record high of 261 confirmed cases on Monday.

Prior to the rally, which was held on June 20, Dart had recommended it be postponed due to reports of positive cases of coronavirus linked to large indoor gatherings.

Attendees at the rally were not required to wear masks or practice social distancing.

On Wednesday, Dart said, "In the past few days, we've seen almost 500 new cases, and we had several large events just over two weeks ago, so I guess we just connect the dots."

Health officials are reportedly concerned by trends that show the number of infections in the city will increase.

The Tulsa Fire Department told Forbes that approximately 6,200 people attended the Trump rally, although a campaign staffer claimed that the turnout was 12,000.

Key Background:

Six Trump staffers tested positive for coronavirus shortly before the rally. In the days after the event, dozens of Secret Service agents reportedly self-quarantined as a precaution after two of their colleagues who were on-site tested positive. A journalist who covered the event announced in late June that he has tested positive for Covid-19. Former 2012 Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain attended the rally and was hospitalized for coronavirus last week. Cain, 74, had tweeted a photo of himself not wearing a mask at the rally, with several other maskless people surrounding him in the picture.

Critical Quote:

"Our epidemiologists and contact tracers are inundated with following up with Tulsa County residents who are confirmed positive as the numbers have been extremely high in recent days. Yesterday, we set a new single-day case high and you can see on our website where the trends are moving," said Leanne Stephens of the Tulsa Health Department, in a statement to CNN.

Big Number:

673: Oklahoma health officials reported 673 new confirmed cases of coronavirus statewide on Wednesday, the state's second-highest daily total since the start of the pandemic.

Further Reading:

Amid Alarming Surge, America Reaches Grim Milestone: 3 Million Coronavirus Cases (Forbes)

Health official: Trump rally 'likely' source of virus surge (AP)

Herman Cain Hospitalized With COVID-19 After Attending Trump Tulsa Rally Maskless (Forbes)

I'm a New York-based news desk reporter for Forbes covering sports, politics and business. Please feel free to contact me via email (tsbeer7 [@] gmail.com) or Twitter

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