Surrey school district hit hard by the flu
Posted January 16, 2013 8:21 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
SURREY (NEWS1130) – It’s not just pregnant women and the elderly who are being warned about the flu. Parents should be aware the virus is ripping through several school districts.
Surrey is being hit extremely hard this season.
At least two classrooms have reached 50 per cent absenteeism due to illnesses like the flu according to Doug Strachan with the school district.
Schools are taking extra steps to prevent its spread. “Encouraging parents to keep the students, their children at home when they’re affected by the flu and for a period after,” he says.
He says schools are reminding kids about regular hand washing and are increasing cleaning in affect classrooms.
So far, he adds the number of kids sick at home district wide is on par with last season but that could change in the coming weeks.
“We’re starting to see what might be the flu season hitting us. Overall the district is still about where we’d expect to be in our absenteeism but there’s one classroom in one of our schools, and another classroom in another elementary school where the absenteeism is 40 to 50 per cent,” says Strachan.
“We didn’t deploy hand sanitizers. They aren’t necessary with dealing with the flu, just soap and water does the trick,” advises Strachan.
