Maine CDC reports 8th COVID-19 death linked to wedding

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — An eighth death has been linked to a coronavirus outbreak stemming from a wedding and reception in the northern part of Maine.

The man who died was in his 80s and from Somerset County, the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention said Saturday. Maine now has seen 139 COVID-19-related deaths to date.

The Maine CDC on Saturday reported 30 new positive tests for the coronavirus, putting the state’s total since March at 5,035.

The wedding and reception in the Millinocket area on Aug. 7 is linked to more than 270 cases of COVID-19, including in an outbreak at a nursing home in Madison and a jail.

The Maine CDC said Saturday that the number of deaths related to an outbreak at the Maplecrest Rehabilitation and Living Center in Madison is now seven.

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In other developments, the number of coronavirus cases at a Rumford paper mill has increased to 18, the company said Friday. ND Paper mill has said it was testing the more than 600 workers.

In March, the company said it implemented stringent requirements for employees and added a mask mandate in May, WMTW-TV reported.

The head of the union that represents the workers has urged all community members to follow protocols to limit the spread of the virus.

“You’re killing us. You’re putting me and everybody else out of work,” Gary Hemingway said. “Not just in the mill but in the community, and people are gonna die. It’s not funny. You don’t want to wear a mask, you’re the idiot, but you’re hurting us.”