Sunday will mark the end of the 10-day Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. It was a historic rally that was reportedly the largest in its 83-year history. This raised concerns about the possibility that the huge gathering could be a superspreader for coronavirus like last year's.
Motorcycle enthusiasts pose for group photos during the 81st Annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, which took place on August 8, in Sturgis (South Dakota).
Over 700,000 people were expected to attend the event. Meade County Sheriff Ron Merwin said it was the largest crowd he has seen in 31 years of working the rally.
Sturgis is home to approximately 7,000 people.
In South Dakota, Covid cases rose sharply and hospitalizations increased in the weeks following the rally that attracted 462,000 people to Sturgis.
Officials are worried that the presence of the delta variant this year, along with large crowds who aren't required to wear masks at all, could lead to a new spike in Covid cases. Dr. Anthony Fauci said he is "very concerned" about such a possibility.
According to a New York Times tracker Meade County had five new Covid cases per day for the week ending Friday. This was enough to cause the CDC to declare a high spread level in the sparsely populated area.
