Forty-three people fell ill after a revival at a Pentecostal church in Illinois. Of those 43, 10 have tested positive for COVID-19.
The Daily Herald reports that 80 people gathered at The Life Church of Glenview for a revival service on March 15, days before a statewide stay-at-home order was issued in Illinois. Pastor Anthony LoCascio says he considered canceling the meeting but decided not to, since the number of cases in the state were so low at that time. Plus, he reasoned, they were hosting an out-of-town guest speaker and had been promoting the event.
“A lot of people are sick,” LoCascio says. “My whole family has the same symptoms.”
When LoCascio woke up the morning after the service, he thought he had the flu. He had leg cramps and a fever of 102. A week later, he started coughing.
“My lungs felt very hardened and stiff, like leather,” he says.
LoCascio’s wife, Layna, posted on Facebook that “one of the main pillars in our church, who has cancer, is in the hospital with pneumonia and a blood infection and pancreatic cancer and Covid19. He is not doing good. He’s in ICU and on a ventilator. My husband is tore up about it! SO torn up! He’s been so sick as well.
“It’s been 11 days straight of fever and sickness. He still has fever, and now a cough but he’s able to walk and talk and eat at least. (It had gotten so bad he asked me to check on his life insurance, poor thing.) Without the prayers of precious people all over the nation praying, we might would’ve had a different scenario.”
The church released an official statement, saying many of those who are sick are on the road to recovery.
As of this writing Illinois has over 5,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19. Gov. J.B. Pritzker has extended the stay-at-home order through April 30.
