PENDLETON — The Oregon Health Authority is investigating a COVID-19 outbreak stemming from the Pendleton Whisky Music Fest.

The state as of the first week of August reported 64 COVID-19 cases tied to the music event in Pendleton on July 10. Forty-one of those cases were Umatilla County residents, according to Umatilla County Public Health Director Joe Fiumara. Cases have so far been identified in Umatilla, Morrow, Union and Wallowa counties, as well as Washington state.

“This outbreak is the first one of its size and scope to be traced to an outdoor entertainment event since the lifting of statewide COVID-19 prevention measures at the end of June,” the state said Friday, July 30.

The reported cases almost certainly are an undercount, Fiumara said, adding that more than 25% of people with presumed cases do not cooperate with contact tracers. The total also does not include people who did not attend the concert but were infected by people coming to town.

Cases already were rising in Umatilla County before the 12,000-person event — a surge health officials attributed to the state lifting virtually all pandemic restrictions at the end of June, just as the delta variant was reaching Oregon. But county health data shows a “big jump” in cases between four to six days after the concert, Fiumara said.

“While I am by no means saying all of these cases are tied to Whisky Fest,” Fiumara said. “It does seem like that concert taking place kind of jump started some additional spread in the area.”

The concert, however, did not appear to break any rules. The state lifted virtually all pandemic restrictions less than two weeks before, and although health officials voiced alarm about the delta variant and cases rising in Umatilla County, no officials publicly recommended stopping the event. It likely was the largest event Eastern Oregon has seen since the pandemic began.

“It’s a very unfortunate situation,” said event co-manager Doug Corey. “Hopefully everybody will improve and get well. It would be an interesting number to know how many were vaccinated and not vaccinated.”

Corey noted he consulted with county and city officials prior to the festival and obtained all necessary permits. He said he believes the event followed all pandemic guidelines from the state and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Event organizers also capped ticket sales at 12,000 people to downsize, he added.

Fiumara said he appreciated the reduction, adding “there could have been more than 20,000” people.

Corey said he has been in close contact with state health officials as the investigation is underway. State, county and tribal officials are working together to identify other cases from attendees, the state said.

County death toll nears 100

Umatilla County reported its 95th COVID-19 death in a Monday, Aug. 6, press release.

The disclosure comes as the county reported 145 new COVID-19 cases, raising the county total case count since the pandemic began to 10,114, the press release said.

The victim is a 69-year-old man who tested positive on March 3 and died 20 days later at Kadlec Regional Medical Center in Richland, Washington. He had undisclosed underlying health conditions, the press release said.

The health department recently reported several COVID-19 victims who died months ago, all of whom died in Washington. That’s because Washington has different reporting requirements than Oregon, health officials say, which suggests that the county’s death toll could be higher than previously disclosed.

The press release comes a week after the county’s reported COVID-19 cases surged past 10,000 cases. More than one in eight people have had COVID-19 in Umatilla County, according to health data.

The county continues to report some of the highest case rates in Oregon and is reporting more daily cases on-average than at any other point in the pandemic. The surge, health officials say, is being driven by the highly contagious delta variant spreading rapidly among unvaccinated people. Last week, the county reported 416 new cases — the second straight week with more than 400 cases.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that people wear masks in public indoor places in areas where there are more than 50 new infections per 100,000 residents over the previous seven days. Umatilla County’s case rate is more than 18 times higher than that, according to state data.

Concerns for upcoming events

The outbreak and the ensuing investigation does not bode well for upcoming events in Umatilla County, including the Umatilla County Fair and the Pendleton Round-Up, Fiumara said.

The fair runs this week, Aug. 11-14, and typically draws thousands of people. Fiumara said he expects cases to rise because of the fair, but he would not formally recommend against holding the event because of the backlash that would ensue.

“I think if you’re trying to reduce cases, I think canceling fair would be a way to do that,” Fiumara said. “And I think it would be an effective way to prevent additional spread. That being said, I’m not sure all the fallout from cancelling it would be worthwhile. I think there would be a lot of pushback.”

State and county health officials agree the best way to ensure outbreaks don’t result from large summer events is by getting more people vaccinated against COVID-19.

“Outbreaks like these will continue to occur if vaccination rates don’t increase,” said Rudy Owens, a spokesperson for OHA.

Less than 40% of Umatilla County residents are vaccinated against the virus, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Fiumara said Gov. Kate Brown’s office reached out to the county last week, asking how officials planned to curb the county’s skyrocketing infection rates. He noted the last time Brown’s office made that move was a week before the state shut down Umatilla County.

“The state is watching things very closely,” he said.