Paramore during the first show of the eras tour at La Défense Arena in Paris, France (2024) taken by Kevin Mazur

Taylor Swift: several Covid clusters reported since her visit to Paris

"An exceptional show. From May 9 to 12, Taylor Swift provided four concerts as part of her European tour The Eras Tour, on the stage of La Paris Défense Arena. While the spectators present on site were delighted to see their idol in the flesh, others were somewhat disillusioned after the performance. And for good reason, on the following days, several hundred of them would have experienced symptoms related to Covid-19, as Le Parisien reported on Friday, May 17. Some have indeed carried out a test that turned out to be positive: "I caught Covid at the N3 (the 3rd of the four concerts)", "I got tested today and I have Covid (I was at the N3 and I've been sick since Monday)" or "Be careful it's Covid, I tested positive yesterday and a girlfriend too, we were at the Thursday concert (the N1)," we read, according to comments that the daily echoed.

Quickly, clusters were formed. "All the people I know and who went there too have fallen ill, whether it was Covid or not," says Camille, a 27-year-old teacher, to Le Parisien. If the two self-tests she performed were negative, Marine, another "Swiftie", wants to remain cautious: "We no longer heard too much about Covid but, in hindsight, we think it's logical since we were in a closed place, with 45,000 people per night... If a virus circulates, it goes very fast." And epidemiologist Antoine Flahault confirmed: "People shout, sing, are very close to each other, it's crowded... It's very conducive to super clusters."

On its official website, La Paris Défense Arena assures that "the room has been designed to manage air treatment, by guaranteeing spectators a welcome in optimal sanitary, safety and comfort conditions." It is also "equipped with 15 air treatment plants associated with seven extractors, making it possible to renew the atmosphere of the entire room in two hours."

Covid Risk Assessment:

Covid is not over and to be even remotely safe indoors, the air needs to be exchanged with fresh outdoor air/MERV13 filtered air 6+ times/hour, not once every 2 hours 🙄.

Currently 1 in 50 people have Covid. So in a venue that holds 40k people, you're sharing the air with 800 people that have Covid. And since it's an airborne virus, well... it's going to spread and there will be super clusters which will cause even more spread.

This can be mitigated by decreasing your risk of exposure. If you're going to a show, your best protection is to wear a well fitting respirator mask - an N-95, or an N-99/100 which is equivalent to an FFP2 or FFP3 in the EU. If you have the option, you can further decrease your risk by going to an outdoor show in the fresh air.

Also, ensure your Covid vaccination is within the last 6 months, ideally 3 months, as immunity starts to wane. It takes ~ 14 days from the injection date to mount a full immune response so plan accordingly. If you're going to be in a crowded area, it's better to have stronger protection. In many places, you can receive a booster 3 months after your last one, especially if you or a family member are more vulnerable.

Please protect yourself and everyone around you.

Paramore during the first show of the eras tour at La Défense Arena in Paris, France (2024) taken by Kevin Mazur

Paramore perform Burning Down The House during the first show at La Défense Arena in Paris, France (2024) via xorainbowlouis

Paramore during the first show of the eras tour at La Défense Arena in Paris, France (2024) taken by Kevin Mazur

Paramore perform Ain’t It Fun during the first show of the eras tour at La Défense Arena in Paris, France (2024) via maximkuzlin

Paramore during the first show of the eras tour at La Défense Arena in Paris, France (2024) taken by Kevin Mazur

Paramore perform The Only Exception during the first show of the eras tour at La Défense Arena in Paris, France (2024) via xorainbowlouis

Paramore perform Still Into You during the first show of The Eras Tour at La Défense Arena in Paris, France (2024) via maximkuzlin