MORGANTON, N.C. — The Burke County Health Department has told Burke County Public Schools about clusters of COVID-19 cases at two separate schools -- Table Rock Middle School and Drexel Elementary School.
Officials said the clusters are thought to be connected with the schools’ open houses on Aug. 19.
Classes will remain in-person and the district does not plan to move the schools or particular classrooms to remote learning, based on local and state guidance, school leaders said.
“We will have extra staff in the buildings this evening conducting a thorough cleaning of the schools,” said Burke County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Mike Swan. “We will continue other mitigating factors as well and remind students to properly wear their masks, practice social distancing when possible and wash their hands often. We also ask that parents please know the symptoms of COVID-19 and keep your child home if they are sick. When in doubt, we ask that you contact your health care provider and/or the school nurse. We continue to make the health and safety of students and staff a priority.”
The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services defines a cluster as a minimum of five confirmed cases with illness onsets or initial positive results within a 14-day period and plausible epidemiologic linkage between cases.
The symptoms of COVID-19 are:
- Fever (100° or higher) or chills
- Sore throat
- Cough
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
- New loss of taste or smell
- Diarrhea
- Nausea or vomiting
- Headache
- Fatigue
- Muscle or body aches
- Congestion or runny nose
(WATCH BELOW: Middle school in Fort Mill goes virtual after dozens of positive COVID-19 cases)
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