First confirmed case in county is in Hannibal School District
By Jarod Wells
Tuesday, October 06, 2009 at 9:06 a.m.
Read more: Local, Education, Community, Health
HANNIBAL, MO -- (Hannibal, Mo.) The first case of H1N1 one has been confirmed in Marion County.
And it was diagnosed in a student in the Hannibal School District.
The student has been treated and is now recovering at home.
KHQA's Jarod Wells spoke with Hannibal School District Superintendent Jill Janes to find out what is being done to keep your kids safe and make sure the virus doesn't spread.
"We knew it was coming, we just didn't know when," said Janes.
H1N1 came to the Hannibal School District Monday, October 5th, when a student at Veterans Elementary was diagnosed with the virus.
"And is it a wake up call? Probably a wake up call for everybody," said Janes.
Janes says the Hannibal School District began preparing for H1N1 before school started; custodians taking extra precautions while cleaning schools, making hand sanitizer available and monitoring students for any symptoms.
What is the Hannibal School District going to do to prevent the spread of this disease?
"Now we're just continuing all those precautions. Now that it's here hopefully parents will monitor, teachers will monitor just a little bit closer just to make sure that there wouldn't be a spread," said Janes.
Janes says students understand that it is important to wash their hands, but parents, teachers and administrators need to continue stressing good hygiene.
"I think everyone is concerned. Now today our attendance is pretty much normal, we might have had a handful of students stay home just as a precaution, but overall I think people are taking it in stride because it's not something you can prevent, it's just something you have to do your best to monitor," said Janes.
The district is also working closely with the medical community, finding out what symptoms to look for and what precautions are necessary to take.
And we appreciate the parents who called us here at KHQA Monday night to let us know about this.
Keeping students safe is one of our top priorities.
Please note that it will not be our intention to sensationalize or scare you with this information about the H1N1 virus as more cases are diagnosed.
It is our policy to educate the public with the facts, and to squelch rumors and misinformation.
