Stratford Student May Have Coronavirus; Wilcoxson School Closed

STRATFORD, CT — Officials hope to know by Wednesday whether a Wilcoxson Elementary School student has the new coronavirus.

The child, who it appears was exposed to the virus through a person they know and not through travel, is under the care of a health provider, according to Public Health Director Andrea Boissevain, who said the town is not releasing any identifying information about the student.

Wilcoxson will be closed from Wednesday to Friday to allow for extensive cleaning and sanitation, Superintendent Janet Robinson said.

"As of right now no other schools are impacted," she said. "... This is an ever-changing situation."

Robinson and Boissevain spoke about the issue at a press conference Tuesday afternoon at Town Hall that was also attended by Mayor Laura Hoydick and other officials.

Stratford is working with the Connecticut Department of Public Health to determine when the student became ill, according to Boissevain, who said when a person tests positive for coronavirus anyone who has come into direct contact with that person is typically asked to self quarantine for 14 days.

The school district has the option to submit a waiver to the state to substitute regular school days with up to two weeks of distance learning, Robinson said.

If confirmed, the Stratford case would be the third new coronavirus diagnosis of a Connecticut resident. So far, the diagnosed patients include a middle-aged Wilton man reported to have contracted the coronavirus while traveling in California and a woman in her 60s who lives in Bethlehem but works at Bridgeport Hospital and is reported to have acquired the virus on a trip to Nevada. Region 14 schools in Woodbury and Bethlehem are closed until the end of the week after the woman had contact with a student.

With no vaccine or antivirals for the new coronavirus, Boissevain urged Stratford residents to wash their hands, cough into their elbows and practice routine cleaning. Other precautionary measures could include voluntary quarantines, school closures and social distancing, she said.

Gov. Ned Lamont has declared a state of emergency in response to the virus. In Stratford, first responders, health department staff and school officials have formed an emergency management team to address the issue.

So far, the U.S. has had 808 confirmed new coronavirus cases, 28 of which were fatal, Johns Hopkins University & Medicine reported as of early Tuesday evening.