74 people linked to COVID-19 outbreak at Oregon church

Seventy-four people who have contracted the COVID-19 disease has been linked to a church in Oregon.

The Oregon Health Authority said 74 coronavirus cases can be traced back to the Peoples Church in Salem, the Statesman Journal reported.

Peoples Church is a non-denominational Assemblies of God church.

The investigation of the outbreak started at the beginning of April and the results were released Wednesday.

On the church’s Facebook page, pictures can be seen of the church holding in-person services with no masks or social distancing.

Peoples Church is in Marion County in Oregon, which has been under “high risk” for the virus for months and has recently moved its status to “extreme risk.”

“We are concerned about the COVID-19 surge in Oregon,” church spokesman Brent Kintz said in a statement. “This statewide increase has impacted our entire region, including our church family. Pastor Erickson is looking forward to sharing a Mother’s Day message in our online and in-person worship services this Sunday.”

There will be three in-person services on Sunday for Mother’s Day. The pastor and his wife were both in the hospital last month due to the coronavirus, according to the Facebook page.

The church is supposed to be requiring social distancing and masks while also letting only 100 people in for services — or filling to 25 percent capacity.

In May of last year, Peoples Church teamed up with nine other churches to sue Gov. Kate Brown (D) for her coronavirus restrictions, saying they violated religious freedom, according to the Statesman Journal