Authorities Report Possible COVID-19 Exposure at Sturgis Motorcycle Rally

Less than a week after the conclusion of the 2020 Sturgis Motorcycle Rally comes word of the first confirmed case of a COVID-19 infected person attending the event.

The South Dakota Health Department is reporting that a rally attendee has now tested positive for coronavirus. That individual was at the One-Eyed Jack’s Saloon on Main Street in Sturgis, from noon to 5:30 PM, Tuesday, August 11.

Officials are encouraging anyone who visited the business during that time to monitor their symptoms for 14 days.

According to the website RideApart, the final numbers from the South Dakota Highway Patrol show that 365,979 people attended the 80th edition of the rally. That number is about 7.5 percent less than in 2019.

Earlier this week, Bloomberg Law, using cell phone tracking data from the research firm Safegraph, reported that just on the first day of the rally - Friday, August 7 - bikers arrived in South Dakota from at least 39 states and 680 counties.