Probable Case of Swine Flu Closes Rockville High
Why
Rockville High School is closed "until further notice," officials said last night, because authorities have reported a probable case of swine flu involving a student. Although it is the first school in the Washington area shut down because of the potential pandemic, hundreds of other U.S. schools -- mostly in Texas -- have closed their doors in an effort to stop the spread of the virus, which is believed to have originated in Mexico. Montgomery County school officials planned to alert parents of the closure through phone calls this morning. "A decision was made to close the school Thursday on the advice of the Centers for Disease Control and the Maryland state health department," said Montgomery County Health Officer Ulder Tillman said told reporters last night. "We are taking immediate steps to close the school." Few details were released about the student, who is suffering from symptoms of the virus and is the ninth probable case in the state, officials said. They said the student was last at the school, located at 2100 Baltimore Road in Rockville, on Monday. School officials said they were alerted to the case at about 6:30 p.m. yesterday and said they must gather more information to determine how long the school will remain closed. A news conference is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. today. "We do concur with the decision, it was undertaken after great consideration," said Frances Phillips, Maryland's deputy secretary for public health services. County school officials also learned yesterday that a Takoma Park Elementary School teacher may have been exposed to the virus by her husband, a World Bank employee who was recently in Mexico. The husband tested positive for swine flu in a preliminary screening but has recovered from his illness; neither his wife nor his children, who attend county public schools, have been ill. The teacher agreed to stay home from school, as did the couple's two children, who attend Westland Middle and Einstein High, but the schools remained open, officials said. The teacher and children are expected to be cleared to return as early as today. School officials say there is little risk because neither the teacher nor her children has showed any flu symptoms. Parents at the three schools were notified of the situation in recorded telephone calls yesterday afternoon. Among the students taking the situation in stride this morning was Peter Krogh, a 13-year-old seventh-grader who arrived at Westland with only mild reservations. "I know there's nothing really to worry about," he said. "I guess it's kind of just fear of the unknown."
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References:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/01/AR2009050100981.html,http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/health/bal-swine-flu-maryland-0501,http://www.wtop.com/?nid=803&sid=1665829&comments=true,http://www.wtop.com/?nid=25&sid=1665829,http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/2009/05/01/swine-flu-closes-rockville-high/,http://grapefeed.org/blog/5197/
