UPDATE:8 attendees of Episcopal conference in Louisville now have COVID-19

A sixth person who attended an Episcopal conference in Louisville in February has tested positive for the new coronavirus, officials said Saturday.

The identity of the sixth attendee was not immediately known, but Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser tweeted Saturday that the district's newest COVID-19 cases include a 42-year-old male who attended the Consortium of Endowed Episcopal Parishes conference, which was held Feb. 19-22 at the Omni Hotel in downtown Louisville.

The fifth announced patient was the Rev. Brad Whitaker, of St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Chattanooga, Tennessee, who was diagnosed Friday with the COVID-19 virus, his church said in a statement.

Whitaker's church said he started feeling ill after returning from the CEEP conference, which gathered together more than 500 Episcopalians from the around the country.

"He was diagnosed and treated for pneumonia, which included a long period of recovery at home. Since that time, it has been reported that an attendee of the conference was diagnosed with the COVID-19 coronavirus. Upon receiving this news, Brad elected to be tested as well."

The Rev. Dr. Robert Pace, rector at Trinity Episcopal Church in Fort Worth, Texas, the Rev. Janet Broderick, rector at All Saints' Episcopal Church in Beverly Hills, California, the Rev. Ray Cole, with the Church of the Epiphany in New York, and the Rev. Timothy Cole, with Christ Church Georgetown in Washington, D.C., also attended the CEEP conference in Louisville before falling ill and later testing positive for the COVID-19 virus.

It wasn't immediately clear if the sixth attendee was also a member of Cole's church in Washington, but Christ Church Georgetown did say on its website Friday that three other members have tested positive for the virus.

In a statement Saturday, CEEP Executive Director Joe Swimmer said the six people were at a "rector and dean pre-conference together" and that the Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness is reaching out to all attendees present at that session.

"They are conducting this outreach out of an abundance of caution," Swimmer said. "Since it has been more than 20 days since our conference ended, we are well outside the incubation period. The health officials believe that anyone who was likely to contract the virus at this session would have shown symptoms by now."

Dr. Lori Caloia, Louisville's medical director, also said Saturday that the city has not been able to identity any "source case" that may be responsible for the six cases.

"Based on our epidemiological investigation ... none of those cases were identified as being infectious during that conference," Caloia said. "So while they were in Louisville, they were not contagious. ... It is certainly possible that they were exposed to someone who had no or mild symptoms, or it’s also possible that they may have contracted that (virus) in separate locations traveling to and from the conference or in their home cities."

The Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth confirmed in a statement that Pace, 53, attended the Louisville conference and that he is hospitalized in isolation.

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The Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles said in a newsletter Wednesday that Broderick, the sister of actor Matthew Broderick, is also undergoing treatment at a hospital and "dramatically improving."

She became ill after attending the Louisville conference, according to her parish.

And the Church of the Epiphany in New York City told its members this week that Cole has a confirmed case of the COVID-19 virus "due to recent contact with someone who is also confirmed as having a case of the virus."

Cole has since been discharged from a hospital and is "receiving good care," the church added in an email to parishioners.

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Pace's wife tested negative for the virus but will remain in self-quarantine at home for 14 days, Trinity Episcopal Church told its members in a message posted on its website.

After attending the conference in Louisville, Pace began feeling ill on Feb. 27 and went to his physician, according to church officials. He tested negative for the flu twice.

But on Sunday, the Fort Worth diocese said Pace and other staff at Trinity Episcopal Church began discussing how the Rev. Timothy Cole from Washington, D.C., was diagnosed with COVID-19 after attending the same conference in Louisville.

Pace does not know the D.C. pastor and was not aware of encountering him at the conference, according to the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth.

On Monday, Pace met again with his physician and was tested for the virus before getting admitted to his local hospital with pneumonia, the diocese said.

He received the presumptive positive results of the test about 5 p.m. Tuesday, according to the diocese.

After feeling ill on Feb. 27, Pace did not return to Trinity Episcopal Church until March 4, when he spoke during a Lenten program.

That evening, Pace and other church officials "wiped all hard surfaces in his offices and commonly touched surfaces in his office with Clorox wipes," the diocese said.

After leading the Lenten program, the assistant rector also "wiped the lectern, microphone, chair and piano bench with Clorox wipes just to be extra cautious."

"Pace’s exposure to anyone being within 3 feet of him was very limited, mainly to the associate priest and the deacon," the diocese said. "Pace was appropriately cautious also. At that time, he was coughing but had been fever-free for 24 hours."

On Tuesday night, Trinity sent a letter to its members, informing them of Pace's illness and alerting the approximately 45 people who attended the March 4 Lenten program.

After initial discussions with public health officials, the church also told the rest of the congregation that, based on exposure to Pace, "they are at no risk," according to the diocese.

With just over 2 million residents, Tarrant County is the third-most populous county in Texas.

The home churches of the five identified pastors to test positive for the virus have each canceled services and programs in the wake of their leaders being diagnosed.

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Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said earlier this week that the patient from Washington, D.C., was not infectious while he was at the Omni Hotel conference.

Officials with DC Health also said the Rev. Timothy Cole wasn't "experiencing symptoms like fever or cough" while in Louisville for the Episcopal conference.

"Therefore, there is no identified risk of exposure to CEEP conference attendees as a result of contact with this case," DC Health said in a statement.

About 80% of the people who get COVID-19 have mild or no symptoms, according to the World Health Organization.

Dr. Sarah Moyer, Louisville's chief health strategist, said at a press conference Wednesday that there's no indication the conference will spark an outbreak in Louisville.

On Friday, a spokesperson for Fischer said the city's health department "is working with multiple health departments to obtain the necessary information to make an educated conclusion about these cases."

"We are obviously concerned about a potential link between cases and the possibility of an exposure at this conference, and providing individuals involved with the conference as much accurate information as possible," spokeswoman Jean Fischer said.

Dr. Steven Stack, Kentucky's public health commissioner, said Monday morning in Frankfort that "just because someone has the disease doesn't mean they have spread the disease everywhere they have been."

"If they're following those same kinds of steps, personal hygiene, that helps minimize their risk of spreading to other people," Stack said. "And if those around them are doing social distancing, 6-feet distance, also not touching their face and eyes. ... You follow those practices and it helps keep everybody safe."

Omni Louisville Hotel General Manager Scott Stuckey said in a statement the hotel remains in contact with the leadership of the CEEP conference and Louisville health officials "to monitor any further impact on conference attendees."

When asked whether any workers at the hotel have sinced reported illnesses or called out sick, a spokeswoman for the Omni said she was not aware of any but would check on the matter.

"Simply being at the conference with someone not showing symptoms is not a risk factor. We have alerted our local health department about this new development, and we continue to follow CDC guidance," Stuckey said. "We issue daily reminders to associates about proper cleaning and handwashing protocols, and all associates are strongly advised to stay home if they feel sick."

Swimmer, the CEEP director, said his group continues to be in touch with the Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness.

"This is a difficult time for so many, and we know many of you are providing important pastoral care to people in your communities impacted by this virus," Swimmer added. "Please join us as we continue to pray for those affected and support each other through this time."

Reach Billy Kobin at bkobin@courierjournal.com or 502-582-7030. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: courier-journal.com/subscribe.