COVID-19 Cluster in New Hampshire Linked to University of New Hampshire Theta Chi Fraternity Party – NBC Boston
A cluster of COVID-19 cases in New Hampshire is being linked to a fraternity at the University of New Hampshire, according to school officials and the state Department of Health and Human Services.
The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services said Sunday it is investigating a potential outbreak of the virus among people associated with the Theta Chi Fraternity.
Eleven people connected to a party at the fraternity, located at 5 Strafford Ave. in Durham, have tested positive to date, health officials said.
School officials say the 11 people who have tested positive for the virus attended a party on Saturday, Aug. 29, where there were more than 100 people not wearing masks.
All members of the fraternity are in a 14-day quarantine, university officials said.
Any guests of the Aug. 29 party who are not members of the fraternity but are part of the UNH community should immediately quarantine and contact UNH Health & Wellness at 603-862-9355, according to school officials.
Health officials say anyone who visited the Theta Chi Fraternity since the end of August may have been exposed to the virus and should self-observe for illness and seek testing.
The novel coronavirus can present with a wide range of symptoms including fever, chills, cough, shortness of breath, runny nose, nasal congestion, sore throat, fatigue, headache, muscle aches, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or loss of taste or smell.
Any person who develops new symptoms should stay home, limit their contact with others, immediately contact their healthcare provider and get tested for COVID-19.
The fraternity is facing student conduct judicial proceedings due to the size of the gathering and lack of mask wearing, school officials said.
The university says it is taking several precautions to keep its community safe including testing students and staff regularly, enhanced cleaning on campus and requiring all members to wear masks.
On Sunday, DHHS announced 29 new cases of COVID-19 and one additional death in the state. There have now been 7,447 cases and 433 deaths.
