Six Trump staffers setting up Tulsa rally test positive for coronavirus
FILE - Supporters of US President Donald Trump camp near the BOK Center on June 19, 2020, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Trump will hold his first rally since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. (SETH HERALD/AFP via Getty Images)
TULSA, OK - President Donald Trump's campaign says six staff members helping set up for his Saturday night rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, have tested positive for coronavirus.
The campaign's communications director, Tim Murtaugh, said in a statement that "quarantine procedures" were immediately initiated and no staff member who tested positive would attend the event.
He said no one who had immediate contact with those staffers would attend, either.
Murtaugh said campaign staff members are tested for COVID-19 as part of the campaign's safety protocols.
Campaign officials say everyone who is attending the rally will be given temperature checks before they pass through security. They will also be given masks to wear, if they want, and hand sanitizer at the 19,000-seat BOK Center.
The rally is expected to be the biggest indoor event the country has seen since restrictions to prevent the coronavirus from spreading began in March.
Tulsa has seen cases of COVID-19 spike in the past week, and the local health department director asked that the rally be postponed.
But Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt said it would be safe.
The Oklahoma Supreme Court on Friday denied a request that everyone attending the indoor rally wear a mask, and few in the crowd outside Saturday were wearing them.
This is a developing story. Check back later for updates