BATON ROUGE - Governor John Bel Edwards announced he tested positive for COVID-19 just hours after he attended a groundbreaking event for a new road project with numerous state officials. 

The governor said in a statement that he tested positive Friday but that he was not experiencing any symptoms. Earlier that same morning, the governor was photographed with several people at the groundbreaking for the LA 1 improvement project in Lafourche Parish.

Gov. Edwards, State, and Local Leaders Break Ground on Phase II of LA-1 Improvement Project https://t.co/82kjmgtBAI pic.twitter.com/AzozFeGECr

— Louisiana DOTD (@La_DOTD) June 24, 2022

It's unclear whether anyone else who attended the event tested positive for the virus.

Read the governor's full statement below. 

“Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, I have taken many precautions to avoid becoming infected and sick and spreading illness to those around me, including taking recommended vaccines, wearing masks and routinely testing for COVID. I am thankful that, as a vaccinated and twice boosted person, I am not currently experiencing symptoms of COVID despite having tested positive for the first time,” Gov. Edwards said. “Right now, COVID hospitalizations are low, but the number of people testing positive is going up, and there is still a lot of COVID circulating in Louisiana. It’s incredibly important that everyone stay up-to-date with their COVID vaccinations and take care to avoid getting sick.”