Germantown Academy To Close For 3 Days After Student's Relative Tests Presumptive Positive For Coronavirus
FORT WASHINGTON, Pa. (CBS) -- A Montgomery County school will close for three days after a student's relative tested presumptive positive for coronavirus. Germantown Academy will be closed on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, officials announced on Sunday.
School officials say a student's family member is one of the two presumptive positive COVID-19 cases announced Saturday in Montgomery County.
The student has no symptoms of the virus but will self-quarantine at home for at least 14 days, school officials say. The family member is experiencing mild, cold-like symptoms.
"Though the Montgomery County Department of Public Health has advised us that there is no concern for anyone else right now, we are a large community with people of all ages and conditions and caring for them must be our priority," Germantown Academy Head of School Rich Schellhas said in a statement.
"We are taking proactive measures to protect the health of our students, teachers, staff and those who use our facilities."
The school will operate virtually for grades PreK-12 beginning on March 12 and ending on March 17 when spring break begins. The school will be deep cleaned and disinfected beginning Monday and continuing through spring break.
"I definitely didn't expect not coming to school this upcoming Monday. Definitely a shock to hear a news of this," Cole Klein, a student, said.
Montgomery County officials signed an emergency disaster declaration after two presumptive positive coronavirus cases were announced Saturday.
Two adults were exposed to COVID-19 in an area of the U.S. where the virus is present. Officials say both have mild symptoms and in isolation at their homes.
One of the patients presumed to have tested positive is a woman from Worcester Township and the other is a man from Lower Gwynedd Township.
On Sunday afternoon, the Pennsylvania Department of Health announced two more presumptive positive coronavirus cases in Montgomery County.
The total number of presumptive positive coronavirus cases in Pennsylvania is six-- with four in Montgomery County, one in Delaware County and another in Wayne County.
