Fort Worth offered free rapid COVID tests during rodeo. Here’s how many were positive
Nearly 100 people who attended National Finals Rodeo-related events in Fort Worth tested positive for coronavirus at rapid testing stations in Fort Worth.
Fewer than 1,000 people received the rapid COVID-19 tests at stations in the Fort Worth Convention Center, Will Rogers Memorial Complex and at the Stockyards. The city ordered 30,000 rapid tests for residents and visitors, and Fort Worth Fire Chief Jim Davis said there had been speculation more quick tests would be needed. Just 724 people received tests.
Of those tested, 95, or about 13%, were positive.
Davis said those who tested positive were asked to voluntarily quarantine at home or in their hotel room and to begin contacting anyone who they may have exposed within the previous 48 hours. The city sent test results to Tarrant County Public Health.
“There was no push back, everybody was cooperative,” he said.
Davis said Tarrant County Public Health would be responsible for contact tracing. The county did not immediately return a call and email requesting information about contact tracing.
The tests were part of the city’s plan to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 at events related to the National Finals Rodeo. The rodeo itself, at Globe Life Field in Arlington, was expected to draw upwards of 15,000 a night, but smaller related events in Fort Worth could bring close 10,000 to the city. Virus and public health experts have said smaller events would lead to coronavirus outbreaks.
Davis said he suspected most of the tests went to visitors or workers at rodeo-related events. Anecdotally, he had heard of at least one vendor inquiring about more tests after a worker tested positive. It’s unclear how many rodeo goers used the city’s free saliva testing, which takes about 30 hours to process.
Testing is only effective if large numbers of people are tested and those who are positive quarantine, two public health experts told the Star-Telegram during interviews about Fort Worth’s efforts to mitigate coronavirus spread at the National Finals Rodeo events.
Benjamin Neuman, a Texas A&M University-Texarkana virologist, said the number of positive tests was higher than he had expected. Statewide reporting showed Texas has a positive rate around 13%.
It’s unlikely that 13% of people who attended rodeo events were sick, he said. With a voluntary testing scheme, most of the people tested likely had symptoms, making it more likely tests would be positive.
The data shows that without a doubt people who attended events were sick and may have exposed others, Neuman said, but it’s unlikely the extent of that exposure will be known.
“We won’t ever get a really accurate count and less than epidemiologists want to do the work of trying to track down all these people,” he said.
Ideally the 20 closest contacts to a positive person would also be tested, he said.
The tests came from Vault Health, which is affiliated with Rutgers University in New Jersey. It is the same partner the city has used for the saliva testing. Patients receive a nasal swab that is processed on site within 10 to 15 minutes.
Fort Worth officials said they would enforce mask requirements at the convention center and other public buildings, but some appeared unwilling to wear masks.
About one quarter of the estimated 350 to 400 visitors Cowboy Christmas at the convention center between 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Dec. 9 were incorrectly wearing their mask or not wearing one at all, the Star-Telegram reported last week.
Mask compliance at Stockyards bars was also a mixed bag that same day.
Rapid testing in Fort Worth
Remaining rapid tests will stay in Fort Worth, Davis said. The rapid tests cost about about $1.47 million, he said, which was paid for through the city’s CARES Act allotment.
Despite the low number tested, he said rapid testing was successful and the city is finalizing a plan to use the remaining 29,000 tests. He told the Star-Telegram earlier this month they could be deployed to schools, fire stations and nursing homes.
Davis, who has become the city’s de facto testing czar, said he has high confidence in the tests.
“My guys are very comfortable with this test and they feel that it’s very accurate,” he said.
This story was originally published December 14, 2020 at 2:13 PM.
