The YMCA closed two of its camps in North Georgia after children and staff tested positive for COVID-19. Now, around 85 campers and staff have tested positive for COVID-19 after exposure at the Lake Burton location.
YMCA Camp High Harbour closed its locations on Lake Burton and Lake Allatoona after a counselor at the Lake Burton site in Rabun County tested positive. The YMCA confirmed that since then, multiple people who attended camp at Lake Burton have tested positive. Today, that number climbs to 85 as confirmed by the Georgia Department of Health.
A notice on the camp’s website states, “Due to concerns about the spread of COVID-19, we have made the careful decision to close YMCA Camp High Harbour for summer 2020.”
Camp High Harbour is an overnight residential camp that attracts campers and counselors from many locations in and around Georgia. This year the camp opened on May 31 and was scheduled to close August 1.
The YMCA said all counselors and campers had passed mandatory screenings before arriving. The counselor who first showed symptoms was immediately sent home.
“In preparing for camp, we collaborated with the Centers for Disease Control and the American Camp Association and followed the safety guidelines of the Executive Order from the State of Georgia,” YMCA of Metro Atlanta president Lauren Koontz said in a statement to the AJC.
The YMCA claims to have followed summer camp requirements issued in Gov. Brian Kemp’s executive order. As of July 10, the Georgia Department of Health has confirmed 111,211 cases of COVID-19 in Georgia.
