A hair stylist at Great Clips, 1864 S. Glenstone, in Springfield, worked while sick recently, exposing 84 clients and seven co-workers to COVID-19, according to local health officials.
The Springfield-Greene County Health Department said the person worked on these dates:
- Tuesday, May 12, from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
- Wednesday, May 13, 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- Thursday, May 14, from noon to 6 p.m.
- Friday, May 15, from 1 to 6 p.m.
- Saturday, May 16, 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- Sunday, May 17, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Tuesday, May 19, from noon to 6 p.m.
- Wednesday, May 20, noon to 6 p.m.
The health department announced the potential exposure of coronavirus Friday. Clients who had appointments with the stylist during those times are being notified of their exposure to COVID-19 and are being offered testing for the illness, according to a news release from the health department.
Both the stylist and their clients wore masks, officials said.
Springfield-Greene County Health Department director, Clay Goddard, said this should give officials a chance to see how effective masks are in preventing the spread of COVID-19.
The person is believed to have contracted the illness when they traveled domestically to a high-risk area.
Officials also said another unrelated case went out in public while sick. They worked out at 10 Fitness, 1444 S. Glenstone, May 14, 15 and 18 between noon and 1. They visited the Dairy Queen, 3665 E. Sunshine, around 5:30 p.m. on May 18 and the Walmart, 2021 E. Independence, on May 20 around 7:30 p.m.
And another person who was diagnosed with COVID-19 visited the CVS at Battlefield and Campbell between 11 a.m. and noon for about 20 minutes while wearing a mask.
Anyone deemed not to be a close contact of the hair stylist as well as anyone who was at the other locations on the above dates are at low risk for contracting COVID-19, according to the health department, but they should monitor for symptoms.
Symptoms of COVID-19 include: Cough, fever, shortness of breath, chills, muscle pain, sore throat and new loss of taste or smell.
"This scenario is well within our capacity of our staff to contact trace and hopefully contain," Goddard said. "But, I'm going to be honest with you. We can't have many more of these."
If other similar situations develop, he said, they will strain the community's capacity to deal with COVID-19 "and we will have to reevaluate what things look like going forward."
The City of Springfield announced Wednesday Phase 2 of the city's recovery plan, which eases restrictions further.
This phase calls on everyone "to exercise our own personal responsibility," according to Goddard, and to think not only of themselves but also their families and the community.
"We don't want to move backwards," he said.
