Prague is experiencing record increases in coronavirus infection. One of the main reasons is the famous party at the Techtle Mechtle night bar after more than two weeks.
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It turned out that the statistics of those infected were now filled by a group of children who had returned to Prague from a camp in southern Bohemia.
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And according to the tracing of hygienists, this focus is in the already mentioned company.
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The coronavirus was brought to the South Bohemian camp by one of the leaders who had just become infected at the Techtle Mechtle bar. The information List of Reports was confirmed by the director of the Hygienic Station of the Capital City of Prague, Zdeňka Jágrová.
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“She got infected at Techtle Mechtle Bar. The company was full of athletes and young people working as instructors at such camps. In good faith, she signed infectivity and then became infected, “Jágrová told the News List.
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In connection with the event at the Techtle Mechtle bar, Prague Hygiene already registers 158 infected people, of which 90 people directly participated in the party. Another large group are the children from the camp in southern Bohemia.
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“Gradually, 80 children are being examined, several of which have already been positive,” Jágrová told the News on Wednesday. In total, there were about 130 children in the camp, mostly from Prague.
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This is not the first camp where coronavirus infection has occurred. In Prague, hygiene is also addressed by a suburban camp with 19 infected, another such event was canceled in the Pilsen region or in the Frýdek-Místek region.
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Unconsciously going to camp with coronavirus
But they all have one thing in common. Although the camps observe stricter hygiene measures and avoid contact with locals or trips where children could become infected, the coronavirus will always bring one of the participants to the event. In this case, even increased hygiene measures will not help.
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“Children are admitted to the camp only with a certificate of infectivity, so in theory no infected person should come there. They also prove the infectivity of managers. On the other hand, they can only find out retrospectively that they have come into contact with the infected person before, “says Marie Nosková, director of the Department of Hygiene of Children and Juvenile South Bohemian Hygienists.
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It is in southern Bohemia that most traditionally camps take place in the country. In July, the local regional hygiene station has reported 339 camps, which will be or have been attended by 36,000 children.
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“These numbers are comparable to previous seasons, but this is only due to more frequent reports from the organizers. According to the law, only larger camps with more than 30 children have to report, but this year they also received smaller recommendations to report as well. And there were twice as many as last year, “explains comparable numbers Nosková. The number of larger camps has decreased this year, but at least in the statistics they have been supplemented by reports of smaller events.
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So far, only four camps in the region have had a problem. The two did not have to interrupt, because the infection did not appear until after their end. Of the other two, however, the parents had to pick up the children prematurely. One was the aforementioned camp with the leader, who became infected in a Prague bar, the other was the summer camp of the Buldoci Neratovice hockey team.
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“The child came to the camp after the family celebration, but had no symptoms of coronavirus infection. In retrospect, it was found out that there was a person with coronavirus at the event, so the child was tested preventively and it turned out to be positive, “Nosková describes the course of the infection at the hockey camp in Blatnice near Pojbuk in the Tábor region.
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The parents immediately received a message from the club to come for the children.
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“We found out on Wednesday evening and during it half of the parents picked up the children. The second one is on Thursday morning, “Martin Chabada, the club’s chairman, describes what happened last week. Out of sixty participants in the camp, a total of three small hockey players became infected.
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In such a case, when someone comes to the camp with coronavirus, special hygiene measures, which all camps and camps should follow this year, will not help either.
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“I don’t really understand how it’s transmitted, because the boy who started it all didn’t pass it on to his roommate in the cabin. But there are two positive cottages next door, “adds Chabada.
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The number of infected children is increasing
In the second half of July, according to the numbers of the Institute of Health Information and Statistics, the number of children tested positive for covid-19 also began to increase. The problem with children is not the infection itself. People under the age of 18 usually do not have significant symptoms and in the vast majority of cases they avoid hospitalization. According to older IHIS statistics as of mid-May, only one patient under the age of 18 was hospitalized in the Czech Republic with a severe course of coronavirus.
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Thus, children function mainly as carriers who can spread the infection to other groups, where, for example, a person from a risk group, such as the elderly with chronic diseases, can also become infected.
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“In various commercial camps, children are recreationally from all over the Czech Republic, which can be a problem. On the other hand, the camp is not a much bigger risk than any other event, because according to the recommendations, children from the camp do not go anywhere now and do not meet anyone outside the team, “adds Nosková.
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According to the recommendation of the Ministry of Health, children should avoid contact with the environment at summer camps, including trips to places where a large number of people are concentrated. In addition, between each shift, the accommodation must be disinfected and left empty for at least 24 hours so that the various groups or their belongings do not come into contact. If a coronavirus appears in the camp, it must be terminated.
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Restricting camps is not on the agenda. Any measures will relate in particular to the obligation to wear veils. According to Prague’s chief hygienist Jágrová, for example, in the capital, the obligation to wear veils in the metro, hospitals and non-residential medical facilities, such as pharmacies or doctor’s waiting rooms, could be further extended. If the situation does not improve, the obligation of veils could be reintroduced in all types of Prague public transport.
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