Darien & Greenwich Deal With Coronavirus 'Party Zero'-Type Cases

DARIEN & GREENWICH, CT — Though the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Connecticut has slowed in recent weeks, two Fairfield County communities are grappling with small outbreaks of the virus among teens and young adults.

Young residents from both Darien and Greenwich have attended various parties and/or events, not all of them locally, where it appears they have been infected with the coronavirus (COVID-19).

In Greenwich, parties attended by graduates of Brunswick School, Greenwich Academy and Greenwich High School have turned into spreader events, writes The New York Times. The events have similarities to Westport's "party zero," where a host of people were infected with the virus in March.

The "mini surge" in cases — nearly two-dozen recent cases in Greenwich among the younger set, according to The Times — prompted First Selectman Fred Camillo to urge residents to stay vigilant in fighting to stop the spread of the virus.

"We cannot be complacent, lax, irresponsible and disrespectful by not following that mandate," Camillo said in a recent statement. "We are receiving an increased number of complaints about residents – especially younger folks, having large gatherings, picnics, cookouts and swim parties without regard to social distancing and face mask wearing at your homes or in our parks and beaches.

"You may be with friends and family but you don't know who they all have had contact with. They can inadvertently infect you because no one is wearing a mask. So, wear a mask. They won't get it unless you get it."

In Darien, groups of teens and young adults have attended parties and out-of-town events, and as a result some of them have become infected with the virus. Last week, First Selectman Jayme Stevenson warned of a small spike in confirmed coronavirus cases associated with such activities.

"This has been a problem from the start of the COVID outbreak here in Darien," Stevenson told Patch. "As the ReOpen CT plan has moved into Phase 2 and the summer wears on, folks of all ages are beginning to travel, party together and generally let their guard down. Also, early messaging downplaying the risks to young people have likely played into the sense that kids were not getting or spreading the virus. This is clearly false."

The Darien Times reports that some area clubs, such as the Tokeneke Club, Country Club of Darien and Woodway Country Club, recently have issued warnings to members about people associated with the venues possibly being exposed to the virus.

"There have been many graduation celebrations and kids visiting colleges," Stevenson continued. "These things, in and of themselves are not in conflict with the Governor's rules but doing so without taking appropriate health precautions has apparently exposed some young people to the virus who, in turn, may expose others in our community. Young people, and their parents, need to take seriously their role in helping keep our community safe.

"Unfortunately, the COVID-19 virus is a beast. I don't fault kids for wanting to have a 'normal' summer. The public shaming of sick kids is unacceptable and does not represent our community values for supporting one another. I pray that anyone who is sick does not have significant illness but I also pray that they are taking every precaution to stay quarantined and assist in the Town's efforts to trace their contacts. Public shaming will undermine our efforts to do thorough contact tracing."