Drefach sports club 'deeply sorry' for virus outbreak after awards evening
A sports club has issued an official apology, saying it is 'deeply sorry' for holding a presentation evening that has been linked with 14 new coronavirus cases.
Around 100 people are now having to isolate after the event at Drefach Cricket and Football Club in Carmarthenshire on 29 August.
The club committee posted a statement on their website apologising to the 'wider community' for the spread of the virus.
"As Drefach Football Club, we would like to make a formal apology to everyone associated with the club and the wider community for the role we played in spreading the COVID virus in our community," the statement continued.
"We would like to take this opportunity to explain the circumstances around the presentation evening and clarify the facts surrounding the events in question to dispel any misinformation that you may have heard."
The statement confirmed that the original plan was to have the awards evening outside under a marquee, but it had been damaged the day before the event. It said that Carmarthenshire County Council had since inspected the venue and a deep clean had been carried out.
"The clubhouse is a licensed premises and as such was not limited to a capacity of 30. However, a safe limit of individuals in all areas of the premises should have been calculated and confirmed with Carmarthenshire County Council," it continued.
"The management of the clubhouse is done by Drefach Cricket and Football Club committee and is run by volunteers. Unfortunately, the extensive COVID guidelines required to keep patrons as safe as possible were not up to standard.
"We hope the misguided activity of the Senior Men’s and Women’s section has not tarnished the outstanding work done by so many coaches and volunteers throughout the club. We are deeply sorry for our actions and we have learned from our mistakes. We hope all associated with the club can, in time, forgive us," it ended.