Bridgewater School Coronavirus Cases Climbs To 9

BRIDGEWATER, NJ — The number of cases in the Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District continues to climb as another person on a district school bus has tested positive for the coronavirus, Interim Superintendent of Schools Dr. Thomas Ficarra said in a letter to the community Thursday.

This is the second bus-related case. This brings the total number of positive cases to 9 in the district. It is unclear if the cases are students, teachers or staff members.

"Based upon our consultation with the local health department, all individuals required to quarantine have already been contacted. To be clear, at this time, if you have not been contacted by the school, your child was not impacted by this," Ficarra said.

The district reported on Tuesday two cases at the high school. Read More: 2 More Coronavirus Cases At Bridgewater-Raritan High School

The district previously reported one case on a district school bus last Saturday and four others throughout last week. Read More: Coronavirus Cases Rise To 6 In Bridgewater Schools

All of these cases come just about two weeks after the Bridgewater school district reopened for in-person learning on Oct. 12. It marked the first time in more than six months that students have been inside a classroom. Read More: Bridgewater-Rartian Schools Begin In-Person Hybrid Learning

The district announced late Thursday night that the high school switched to an all-virtual learning program, effective Friday, for the next 2 weeks. Read More: Bridgewater High School Goes Virtual After 3rd Coronavirus Case

In addition, all athletic and extracurricular activities are canceled for the next two weeks. All other district schools will remain open as normal on Friday, Oct. 23.

Ficarra asked parents and students to continue following the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) promoted safeguards, such as:

• Staying home when you are sick;
• Washing hands often with soap for at least 20 seconds;
• Covering coughs and sneezes and properly disposing of tissues;
• Limiting close contact with people who are sick and not sharing food, drinks and utensils;
• Practicing social distancing (staying at least 6 feet apart);
• Wearing a face covering while in school; and
• Continuing to monitor your health for symptoms.

As of Wednesday, Bridgewater had 2 new positive coronavirus cases bringing its total to 608 cases and 67 deaths. The lastest coronavirus-related death in the township was reported on Oct. 4.

Read more: NJ Coronavirus Updates: Here's What You Need To Know

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