At a press conference in Helena on Thursday, Governor Steve Bullock maintained that Montana, even though cases of COVID 19 have increased dramatically, still boasts the fewest cases per capita in the country.

Bullock did, however, target certain events in which coronavirus spread has occurred, particularly weddings.

“There have been six weddings with cases associated to them,” said Bullock. “In the last two weeks alone, these six weddings in five different counties have directly contributed to at least 24 cases to our state’s count. These cases have impacted at least seven Montana counties and at least two other states.”

Bullock narrowed the focus to pre and post wedding activities as the source of the spread.

“Based on how quickly the virus can spread we also do expect that many more cases will be linked to these weddings in the coming weeks,” he said. “It doesn’t appear that the wedding itself is the problem, where measures are put into place to stress social distancing and other precautions. “It seems to be the pre and post wedding events where guidelines aren’t being followed and groups are mingling without necessary measures being taken.”

Bullock also pointed to bars and taverns where cases have broken out.

“We’re also seeing cases directly attributed to bar settings,” he said. “Places where crowd control other guidelines aren’t consistently being followed. For example, Gallatin and Yellowstone counties have identified and traced at least 15 recent cases to local bars, and to be clear, that’s 15 cases that came from interactions in just three different establishments.”

Bullock also said that wearing a mask can significantly reduce the chance for spreading the virus.

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