Lowell High School Closed Over Coronavirus Concerns

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Lowell High School in San Francisco is closed, and all events and gatherings planned at the school have been canceled because of the new coronavirus, COVID-19, according to Laura Dudnick, a spokesperson for San Francisco Unified School District. She said in an email to the media that a relative of a student is being treated for COVID-19.

The school will be closed on Friday. No decision has been made about Monday.

"We know that the student whose relative is being treated was not in school after lunchtime today," Dudnick said. "The Department of Public Health has assessed the student. There is no confirmation that the student has contracted COVID-19 and the student does not have and has not had any symptoms. The student is in self-quarantine."

The district will announce in coming days whether Lowell will reopen on Monday.

US, World Death Toll Rises

The U.S. death toll from the coronavirus is now eleven, according to a count maintained by Johns Hopkins: 9 in King County, Washington; 1 in Snohomish County, Washington; and the California case in Placer County.

The death count worldwide is now 3,347, the majority of them in China. Other nations reporting deaths: Italy, Iran, Iraq, South Korea, Japan, the UK, France, Spain, Hong Kong, the Philippines, San Marino, Switzerland, Thailand, and Taiwan.

The total confirmed cases announced is approaching 100,000. It is currently: 97,841.

Coronaviruses are a family of viruses that include the common cold as well as much more serious diseases. The strain that emerged in China in late 2019, now called COVID-19, is related to others that have caused serious outbreaks in recent years, including severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). The first confirmed case of COVID-19 in the U.S. was on Jan. 21.

The disease, which apparently originated in animals, is now transferring from person to person, although the mechanism is not yet fully understood. Its symptoms include fever, coughing and shortness of breath, and many patients develop pneumonia. There is as yet no vaccine against COVID-19 it and no antiviral treatment.

According to the CDC, the best way of preventing the disease is to avoid close contact with people who are sick, to avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands, to wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, and to use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60 percent alcohol if soap and water are not available.

To avoid spreading any respiratory illness, the CDC recommends staying at home when you are sick, covering your cough or sneeze with a tissue and throwing the tissue in the trash, cleaning and disinfecting frequently touched objects and surfaces.

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Also See:

• Coronavirus: Tests Underway On Cruise Ship Passengers, Crew
• Coronavirus: 2 San Francisco Cases Of Community Spread
• State Of Emergency Declared In CA Amid COVID-19 Death, Outbreak