Andover Public Schools Update On New Coronavirus Concerns

ANDOVER, MA — Andover Public Schools officials "anticipate" that members of the school community will at some point need to be quarantined due to concerns about the new coronavirus, Superintendent Sheldon Berman said in a letter to the community Wednesday. The letter notes that there is only one confirmed case in the state and public health officials continue to say the risk in Massachusetts is low. However, officials expect that exposure is inevitable, Berman said.

"We anticipate that at some point individuals in our schools, will either be in contact with people who have been potentially exposed to the virus or those who have the virus themselves, and need to be quarantined for a period of time," Berman wrote. "There will also be individuals who quarantine themselves due to other medical circumstances. When we know of these situations, we will ensure that classrooms and other potentially impacted areas are cleaned thoroughly."

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.

Berman went on to encourage the community to take precautions that help prevent the spread of both COVID-19 and other respiratory illnesses like the ful. Anyone who is sick is encouraged to stay home, and people "must be fever-free for 24 hours before returning to school from any illness."

"The Coronavirus is thought to be spread via person-to-person contact through contaminated air droplets from coughing and sneezing by an infected person. As with controlling the spread of other viruses, we urge you to speak to your child about the following prevention measures:

• Wash your hands regularly.
• Use cough etiquette.
• Avoid touching your eyes, mouth and nose.
• Ensure adequate sleep, a healthy diet and reduced stress."

There are no changes to school hours or activities at this time.

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.

The CDC has prepared a fact sheet with basic information on the virus.

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.