The new variants, now in most states of the US, are much more contagious with billions of virus particles in the air of individuals with a single mask who can be asymptomatic or think they have an allergy.
My own extended family has been affected. This family group continued the same behavior that kept them safe since March 2020. Within 3 weeks after a picnic, 2 family members were dead from Covid-19, one person is still in the ICU, and 2 others became ill. At the same time, another close family member became ill in the same county. All friends were tested prior to the gathering, 1 person had a false negative test, and 4 people became ill within a week.
The area of the country this occurred in is an area where one of the new variants is becoming common. More than half the US states have this variant and it’s spreading quickly because people continue to travel, and the virus easily spreads through a single mask. Please be careful – wear two masks and limit travel. We have entered a new era of Covid-19 epidemiology.