| February 9th, 2018

Flu Season causes over 800 Leon County students to be out sick

By: journeymagazine

By|Brea Hollingsworth

Leon County Schools is taking serious measures to prevent the spread of the flu in its schools. Recently, Leon County Schools made an announcement that they were not going to shut down schools due to the flu.

The statement was in response to Gulf County’s announcement that they were going to shut down their school for one day.

“We didn’t make a decision for our schools to come to a close. We have never discussed closing,” said Leon County Schools public information officer, Chris Petley. “We will do everything we can to ensure our students safety.”

Over 800 students were reported out sick due to the flu, many with H3N2, the predominate strain of influenza that has been rapidly spreading across the country.

During the last week of January, the flu resulted in the deaths of 16 children. That number has currently spread to at least 53 deaths.

“My daughter’s school bus was running 10 minutes early because of the amount of kids out sick,” says Sam Warren, a parent of a Raa Middle School student. His daughter came down with the flu before the weekend. She was out for one day before returning to school.

“Since catching the flu she has doubled up on daily multivitamins, vitamin C, and she keeps a bottle of hand sanitizer attached to her purse,” says Warren.

FSU health services recently released a memo informing students that they have seen an increase in the number of patients with the flu.

“The flu outbreak on campus has been pretty bad. A lot of people got it and have been out of class for a while. I believe I caught it,” said Adam Powell, a junior at Florida State University.

Photo Courtesy of Brea Hollingsworth

“I have gotten better now. I have been more cautious around campus, staying away from others who are coughing a lot and sneezing.”

FAMU has yet to post a memo on their website; however, students are doing everything they can to prevent it.

“I wash my hands when I get the opportunity. I don’t touch my face,” said Cayuna Williams, a senior FAMU student.

Recently Leon County Schools Superintendent Rocky Hanna approved additional resources for schools to be disinfected this past weekend. Crews came through to undergo a “deep cleaning” process to make sure schools are properly disinfected.

Staff duties included wiping down counters, door-knobs and other surface areas that are touched frequently. Petley also stated that janitorial staffs are making sure that they are actively cleaning schools every day to ensure a healthy atmosphere.

Despite the debate, Warren says he does not have a problem with Leon County School’s decision not to shut down schools.

Medical experts are still encouraging people to prevent the spread of the flu by covering up the nose and mouth when sneezing and coughing, and washing hands often. Even though the flu vaccine was less than 20% effective, experts still recommend getting your yearly flu shot.