SEVERAL dozen people who attended the ‘Naughty in N’awlins’ swingers convention in New Orleans earlier this month contracted the coronavirus, causing the organizer to confess that he “would not produce this event” had he known.
Out of about 300 people who attended the five-day sex fest that began on Nov. 10, 41 people tested positive for Covid-19, Naughty in N’awlins organizer Bob Hannaford wrote in blog post on Friday.
“Most would consider that a positivity rate of 13 percent, but there’s more to a positivity rate,” Hannaford wrote.
“You see, we have no idea how many people got tested after our event, nor if anyone tested positive and didn’t tell us. There could also be people that are positive, but without symptoms, so they never got tested.”
Although most infected attendees experienced no symptoms or minor ones, one attendee, a friend of Hannaford, was hospitalized and in “serious condition,” before getting discharged.
The organizers went to “extraordinary measures” while checking in guests in a sanitized manner, enforcing social distancing in line and doing temperature checks, according to Hannaford.
He said they issued wristbands in different colors to show who had Covid-19 antibodies and others who had recent negative tests, along with the dates.
In addition, this year’s event was modified to promote monogamy as a means to follow coronavirus guidelines.
“The basic public health measures of mask wearing, social distancing, strict hand hygiene needs to be followed at all times,” the organizers wrote in a letter at the time.
Hannaford told The Times-Picayune that “masks are the new condoms” for preventing the spread of Covid-19.
This year’s events did include an erotic masquerade ball and lessons on how to use a flogger.
“Master Don will show you how to use your flogger so that it actually feels good and stimulates you and your partner. Wait til you see his collection of goods!” a post on the event’s website stated.
Despite the precautions, a woman tested positive on the Monday after the festival, although she and her husband had tested negative before the event.
Reflecting on the infections, Hannaford expressed regret over holding the event during the pandemic, because he personally knew two people who suffered from the disease.
“Would I do it all over again? If I could go back in time, I would not produce this event again,” he wrote.
“I wouldn’t do it again if I knew then, what I know now. It weighs on me and it will continue to weigh on me until everyone is 100 percent better.”
