The ritzy upstate town of Millbrook kicked off summer on a sour note when a parasite wreaked havoc on opulent residents with a widespread stomach bug after a gala.
“Everyone [was] devastatingly sick. It’s like a zombie apocalypse,” a source familiar with the situation told Page Six of the ritzy enclave.
“All activities, including Fourth of July parties, have been sparse,” they recently added.
Apparently 200 of the estimated 400 event attendees reported symptoms, local agencies said.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines Cyclospora — the possible culprit — as “an intestinal illness caused by a parasite.” The CDC’s recommendation for preventing the infection is to avoid “food or water that may contain feces.” Yikes!
The parasite is believed to have popped up in the chic country town on June 15, when hundreds attended the Dutchess Land Conservancy’s annual Spring Barn Dance at the historic Sheep Barn at Thorndale Farm estate.
“It took everyone down! Everyone’s been calling it the DLC plague,” another source dramatically told us.
Some found a silver lining.
“Who needs Ozempic when you have a parasite? People were so sick, they were losing 9, 10, 11, 12 pounds. No one could eat anything! They’re summer beach body ready,” a local quipped. “The only people who didn’t get sick were the ones who drank vodka tonics, and didn’t eat the food.”
A source further told us “people were going down like flies,” causing other events around town to be sparsely attended — including an international polo challenge, where a group of attendees, “showed up and left early because they were feeling so sick!”
We’re told many locals initially suspected they’d come down with a norovirus outbreak — but the commissioner of the Dutchess County Department of Behavioral & Community Health informed the president of the DLC that they believe “Cyclospora… may be implicated in this illness.”
“This is not conclusive a this point, but our current suspicion,” the org stated in an email seen by Page Six.
Without mentioning the DLC, a spokesperson for the DBCH in partnership with New York State Department of Health confirmed to us that they’ve been conducting “an investigation of a cluster of cases of Cyclospora related to an event which occurred in Millbrook, New York.”
“Approximately 200 of the estimated 400 event attendees reported symptoms consistent with Cyclospora… The event organizer, host, food service provider, and attendees have been cooperating with DBCH and NYSDOH staff throughout the investigation. The investigation is ongoing,” they said.