The popular gathering of motorcyclists from across the United States began in the small town of Sturgis in South Dakota and will last more than 10 days. Despite the growing number of Covid-19 cases, up to 700,000 people are expected to arrive there. Persons.

US media stressed that this year’s event coincided with an increase in Covid-19 infections, with the delta variant spreading rapidly among unvaccinated people.

The state Department of Tourism estimates that the annual gathering generates approximately $800 million in revenue. Some representatives of local authorities reassured that the gathering could be held “safely” with “appropriate precautions”.

“Whenever a large group of people get together, there is a risk, but with the right precautions and mitigation practices, this can be done safely,” said Danielle Bocelli, director of communications for the South Dakota Department of Health, quoted by USA Today.

In his opinion, it has been a long time since last year’s event, knowledge about the virus has increased, and tests and vaccines against Covid-19 have become more widely available to the public.

“We encourage all participants to continue with risk mitigation strategies and to make the choice of vaccination to protect themselves and others,” Bocelli urged.

According to the New York Times, the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is causing panic among some health experts. However, the paper also acknowledges that it is more difficult to transfer the virus abroad, vaccines significantly reduce the risk of serious disease, and South Dakota has the lowest number of new cases of the virus per capita in the United States.

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“Mead County, which includes Sturgis, has a 37 percent vaccination rate — well below half of Americans who are fully vaccinated, and the city’s six neighboring counties have lower immunization rates,” the New York Times wrote.

The rally was widely criticized last year during the pandemic, calling it a “widespread event”. About 460 thousand people participated in it. Folks, Fox News noted.

Observers have highlighted hundreds of new cases of the disease related to last year’s event. As infected motorcyclists return to their home countries, this has made it difficult to trace their contacts and withhold real data.

As the New York Times reports, last year more than 60 percent. Sturgis residents chose to postpone the motorcycle rally. There weren’t many doubts this year.

“Motorcyclists come here because they want to be here. And we love watching them! Everything we do in life has risks,” said Kristi Noem, Governor of South Dakota.

Andrei Dobroolsky from New York