Ocean Springs School District warns community of coronavirus exposure in 3 schools
The Ocean Springs School District is saying that students at three of its schools have been exposed to the new coronavirus within the last two weeks, warning parents to monitor their children closely for symptoms.
The three schools involved are Ocean Springs Upper Elementary, Ocean Springs Middle School and Ocean Springs High School.
The exposure happened when students came into contact with a family member who has tested positive for COVID-19, according to Ocean Springs Superintendent Bonita Coleman.
Coleman sent a statement to the community on Friday, saying that though the students have been exposed, none have tested positive.
Coleman told the Sun Herald in a phone interview on Saturday that she got word of the exposure through social media.
“Someone sent it to us on a public communication, like Facebook or Twitter,” she said. “We investigated and we had students who had a family member that tested positive. Those students have not tested positive. We try to be cautious and transparent with our students and families so we felt the need to reach out.”
In the letter to the community, Coleman asked that parents continue to monitor their child’s temperature and keep an eye out for symptoms of the illness, including fever, cough and difficulty breathing.
“If you or your child experience these symptoms, please contact your healthcare provider and let them know that your child may have been exposed to COVID-19,” she said.
Coleman said that the school district wasn’t advising other students to self-quarantine.
“We haven’t been told that by the health department and our medical advisors,” she said. “We’re just making sure people are aware. It’s been eight days since students were last in school and we found out yesterday. We’re very transparent with our community. We made the decision to go ahead and put out the statement.”
Ocean Springs schools are closed through April 17, but Coleman said it’s unclear if the April 20 return date will hold up. Students in the school district will take classes online starting on Monday.
“I don’t really know. All the information is so fluid,” she said. “It’s difficult to tell you on today what may happen on Monday. We’ll listen to our government leaders and medical advisors. We’ve moved all our schools online. Students will be in classes virtually.
“We’ll hand out laptops to those who don’t have the necessary device. We’ll do that on Monday in a drive-through service. I hope we can get back on the 20th, but we’ll continue to monitor the situation.”
Coleman asks people in the community to continue to listen to the advice of the Centers for Disease Control.
“People just have to remain diligent, keep social distancing, keep sanitizing,” she said. “Now that the major has made the decision to close down restaurants, maybe people will really stay in the house.”
Biloxi, Gulfport, Ocean Springs, D’Iberville and Moss Point are among the first Coast cities to limit restaurants to only take-out and delivery services.
