'I don't know how I got it. I wasn't in the conga line': Chairman of NY Republican club is hospitalized with COVID and two others test positive after that raucous Queens Xmas party
Three New York Republican club members who attended a Christmas party where some were filmed dancing in a conga line have tested positive for COVID-19, with at least one being hospitalized.
Earlier this month, shocking footage from the holiday party held by the Whitestone Republican Club in Queens on December 9 emerged and showed revelers forgoing face masks and dancing in the conga line.
In the footage, 16 maskless members of the club can be seen shaking their hips to the Bee Gees disco hit 'You Should Be Dancing'.
The party was held despite Gov. Andrew Cuomo banning large gatherings and indoor dining to prevent the spread of the virus. New York, which was the epicenter at the height of the coronavirus epidemic, has recorded 957,412 total infections and deaths in the state are now approaching 30,000.
According to the Queens Eagle, James Trent, the chair of the affiliated Queens Village Republican Club, was admitted to North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset where he is recovering from COVID-19.
Another attendee and his wife have also tested positive for the virus. They have not been identified and no information about their condition was immediately available.
Scroll down for video
At least three people who attended a Christmas party in New York and danced in a conga line have tested positive for COVID-19, with one being hospitalized. James Trent , the chair of the affiliated Queens Village Republican Club, was admitted to North Shore University Hospital
Footage from the Whitestone Republican Club's festivity - held in Queens on December 9 - showed maskless members forming a conga line and dancing to the Bee Gees
Trent said he started having COVID symptoms two days after attending the party.
He told the news outlet that doesn't understand how he got COVID because he 'wasn't doing anything risky'.
Trent added: 'I wasn't on the conga line. I ate by myself,' he said. 'I don't know how I got this.'
Trent said he was admitted into the hospital in stable condition and expects to be released Thursday.
In the footage from the party, one of the revelers is seen waving a Trump 2020 flag as another proudly sports a Make America Great Again hat.
Many of the invitees were elderly, but appeared unbothered by the ongoing pandemic that has killed more than 341,000 people across the US.
More than 19.6 million people have been infected with the virus in the US.
The clip was first shared by journalist Matt Binder wrote: 'The Whitestone Republican Club in NYC apparently held a Christmas party this year without a care in the world about COVID.'
Governor Andrew Cuomo told reporters on a conference call after the video emerged: 'I saw the video. COVID conga lines are not smart.
'That is my official position. Why you would do an unmasked COVID conga line in the middle of a pandemic defies logical explanation.'
The party took place inside Il Bacco Ristorante in Little Neck, Queens. Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio said the city would be investigating the incident and fines could be issued to the restaurant and the club.
One of the women caught in the conga line was Vickie Paladino - a GOP candidate running to represent Queens' District 19.
Paladino has not publicly commented on the footage.
Many prominent Republicans have long expressed their reluctance to wear face masks or tamp down on large indoor gatherings.
But the Queens County Republican Party canceled their holiday party due to the pandemic.
Queens County Republican Party Chairperson Joann Ariola told the Queens Eagle that her organization decided not to have a party this year.
'As the chairwoman of the Queens GOP we made the responsible decision not to have an in-person holiday gathering,' Ariola said.
One of the women caught in the conga line was Vickie Paladino - a GOP candidate running to represent Queens' District 19. She is seen above in black
Two other people who attended the party have tested positive for the virus, but their identities are being withheld and their conditions are unknown