Toms River Schools Close For 2 Weeks Amid Coronavirus Concerns

TOMS RIVER, NJ — The Toms River Regional School District is closing all of its schools for two weeks out of concern over the new coronavirus, the district announced Saturday.

In a letter to parents and the community, Superintendent David Healy said schools will be closed from Monday through March 27 and the district will shift to digital learning. Administrators and support staff will be available at each school and the administrative offices on Monday and Tuesday to assist with rollout of digital learning, he said.

Healy said the decision to close was made when the state Department of Education "finally granted boards of education and school districts clear and proper authority in this matter."

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Families eligible for the federal meal plan will be contacted and provided with support. Anyone requiring additional resources or technology assistance may contact their school or the district's Tech Department.

For low-income families that do not have internet access,Comcast is offering 60 days of its Internet Essentials service at no charge to new customers and increasing the speed of service.

While schools are closed, maintenance teams will continue to sanitize the buildings thoroughly. Toms River has been using Virex, a disinfectant certified by the CDC as effective in killing viruses, throughout the district as concerns about COVID-19 were rising.

There are 50 cases of COVID-19 in New Jersey as of Friday, with one death, a Bergen County man. A Manchester Township man, who was among the new cases announced by state health officials Friday, is the first Ocean County resident with a presumptive positive test.

Presumptive positive means the person tested positive in state labs. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ultimately confirms the test. So far, 100 percent of the state's positive tests have been confirmed.

COVID-19 is caused by a member of the coronavirus family that's a close cousin to the SARS and MERS viruses that have caused outbreaks in the past. Read more: NJ Coronavirus Updates: Here's What You Need To Know

Healy said district administrators spent hours following Gov. Phil Murphy's news conference on Friday afternoon trying to get definitive answers on the issue of school closings, "including multiple communications with area school districts, health officials and medical personnel, the executive county superintendent and, most helpfully, representatives from Legislative District 10."

Information continued to be updated Friday night and through the morning Saturday, leading up to the closure announcement, he said.

"This decision has been made in consideration of the health and well being of our students and community," Healy said. "We are committed to continuing to provide the best education for our children, even at a distance. It is a time unlike any other in memory save for Superstorm Sandy. May we, like we did then, weather this storm together."

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