'Time To Be Cautious:' Lamont On Danbury Coronavirus Alarm

DANBURY, CT — Mayor Mark Boughton and Gov. Ned Lamont advised residents Tuesday to consider the recent spike in the city's coronavirus cases as less of a "surge" and more of an "uptick."

At a joint news conference Tuesday in front of City Hall, Lamont said the state had "come in hard" to Danbury, issuing a COVID-19 alert that has triggered numerous changes to school and recreation schedules.

Lamont said that despite the unusual move from the state Department of Health, it was "not a time to panic, but it is a time to be cautious."

Danbury's Acting Director of Health & Human Services Kara Prunty said her office is investigating an outbreak of four cases at a rehabilitation facility in the city.

Boughton has shut down fall youth sports and the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection closed the boat launch into Candlewood Lake last week. On Monday, Danbury Public Schools announced all learning will be remote at least into October.

"We are doing these things because we want to protect our residents," Boughton said. "They are measured, reasonable and rational."

Statewide, the infection rate has dropped below 1 percent, Lamont said, but was marked at 7 percent in Danbury when the advisory was issued Friday.

"When you have a 6-7 percent infection rate, you pause on that," Lamont said.

Contact tracing has been especially effective providing intelligence and guidance in Danbury, according to the governor. It has allowed investigators to trace heavy spreaders back to sporting events and small family gatherings like barbecues.

In many cases, Boughton said, the infected are people from other countries who are ignoring or eluding the state's travel and quarantine restrictions.

"Most people don't fill out the [coronavirus travel advisory] form," the mayor said.

Boughton said he attended a game last week where parents weren't wearing masks and social distancing was not practiced. The mayor said the data points to the virus even spreading at local soccer games, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had tapped as being only a "moderate" risk.

DEEP shut down the boat launch because contact tracing data showed an extraordinary amount of "spreading" occurring at large parties being held on Candlewood Lake islands, according to the governor.

"You're not going to be going to those big parties going forward," Lamont said.

The governor said the state would "prioritize the Danbury results" in future contact tracing.

State Rep. David Arconti from the 109th District, chair of the House Energy and Technology Committee, made a case for connecting the uptick in COVID-19 positives back to the recent power outage. Boughton said that when the city lost power, it was clear people began to huddle together in close proximity and the virus spread as a result. Many of the homes are in neighborhoods already congested, often with multi-generational housing.

"The Energy Committee will be holding the utilities responsible," Arconti said.