NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- New York state has suspended a Long Island country club's liquor license for hosting a "superspreader" wedding that was linked to more than 30 COVID-19 cases, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Monday.
The North Fork Country Club in Cutchogue hosted a wedding with 113 people in attendance on Oct. 17, in violation of the state's COVID-19 executive orders, which limit non-essential gatherings to 50 people, Cuomo said in a release.
Thirty guests, three country club staff members and a wedding vendor tested positive for COVID-19 after the wedding, and several schools in the area with ties to those who tested positive were forced to shift to remote learning, the governor said.
As a result, the State Liquor Authority has suspended the country club's liquor license, he said. Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone previously said the club faced $17,000 in fines for violating the executive order, as well as the county's sanitary code.
"As we have seen in weddings and similar events across the country during this pandemic, large gatherings can easily be superspreader events, too often with dire consequences," Cuomo said in a statement. "Hosting one of these events after all New York has been through is obnoxious and irresponsible — not to mention illegal."
"We are eight months into this pandemic and simply will not tolerate businesses that put New Yorkers at risk," he added. "Those who ignore the rules will lose their ability to serve alcohol, and I thank [Bellone] and his team for their cooperation in holding these bad actors accountable."
The country club didn't immediately respond to request for comment on the suspension.
