Milford Police Disrupt Party With Hundreds Of People

MILFORD, MA — Milford police broke up a large party over the weekend after a resident called 911 to report people not observing coronavirus safety precautions — but it was just one of several such events Milford police responded to over the weekend.

Police went to a home along Franklin Street downtown at about 10 p.m. Saturday after a caller reported about 100 people not wearing masks. Once on scene, police estimated about 200 people were at the party. The attendees were ordered to disperse.

Police did not make any arrests and did not hand out any tickets, Milford police Chief Michael Pighetti said. Under an order issued by Gov. Charlie Baker, Massachusetts residents can face fines of $300 per mask violation.

"Some mask and social distancing issues are of great concern to us which we discussed with the property owner," Pighetti said on Tuesday about the party.

In early August, Gov. Charlie Baker rolled back his reopening plan to the first step of phase three due to rising cases statewide. That means outdoor gatherings are limited to a maximum of 100 people.

On Saturday night alone, Milford police responded to some seven reported loud parties or other gatherings. On Saturday afternoon, police responded to the field along Beach Street on a report of 24 people playing volleyball and not wearing masks.

Large gatherings have been linked to coronavirus clusters. About 53 of the 65 guests who attended a wedding in Maine earlier this month contracted coronavirus, and at least one guest has died, according to reports. Ten people caught the virus while attending a party of up to 50 people in Chatham in July, according to NBC 10. In Worcester, a Holy Cross student tested positive for the coronavirus last week after attending a large off-campus party.

Meanwhile, a report out Tuesday said that a Biogen conference in Boston in late February infected about 20,000 people. Researchers have labeled it a "super-spreader" event.

Coronavirus cases in Milford dropped to very low levels in June, but the numbers have been rising recently, according to town figures. However, the town's positive coronavirus test rate over the two weeks ending Aug. 19 was about 1.4 percent, which is below the minimum safe threshold of about 2 percent. Milford had fewer than four cases per 100,000 people as of Aug. 19, which is considered good compared to other towns in the state.