LYNN — A Callahan Elementary School staff member has been exposed to the coronavirus and is under a precautionary 14-day self-quarantine, Superintendent Dr. Patrick Tutwiler confirmed on Wednesday.
Tutwiler said the staff member told the school’s principal on Tuesday night that she had been in contact with someone who has since been diagnosed with COVID-19, better known as the coronavirus.
The staff member has been in school since her exposure, which was about a week ago, but has not shown any symptoms.
However, she is now under a 14-day self-quarantine, which the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends for anyone who has come into contact with an infected person. The diagnosed person that the staff member was exposed to does not live in Lynn and there have not been any confirmed cases of the virus in the city, officials said.
The city’s Inspectional Services Department (ISD) was immediately contacted by Lynn Public Schools administration about the incident, and crews worked through the night Tuesday to deep-clean and disinfect the school building before students arrived Wednesday morning, Tutwiler said.
Tutwiler acknowledged there were numerous concerns from Callahan parents, who were informed about the exposure through a robocall late Wednesday morning, but stressed that steps were taken to ensure that there was no danger to anyone in school.
“While we respect those concerns, if the school was in any danger, or following the recommendation of the city’s Department of Health division, if the concern was on that level, I would have closed it,” said Tutwiler. “I don’t open schools that are unsafe.”
While many parents called the school and district administration Wednesday for clarification about whether the staff member had been infected as well, some were considering pulling their child out of school, Tutwiler said.
Mariana Chavez Chacon, the parent of a third grader, said if she had been informed before the school day started, she would have kept her daughter home from school, which is what she intends to do on Thursday.
“I am nervous and my daughter is too,” said Chavez Chacon. “I think they should have sent the message (Tuesday night).”
As of Wednesday, there’s been more than 1,000 confirmed cases of and 30 deaths from the virus in the United States, which The World Health Organization has declared a “pandemic.” Six of the 95 total COVID-19 cases in Massachusetts have been confirmed by the CDC.
Although Tuesday’s self-reported exposure to the coronavirus was the first such incident in the Lynn Public Schools, Tutwiler said the school district has been taking steps to monitor the “evolving situation.”
“I think we’re all monitoring this closely,” said Tutwiler. “It is a serious matter and we’re taking it seriously. I have felt an overwhelming sense of caution and commitment to making sure the buildings remain safe.”
Since Feb. 28, there’s been a more proactive cleaning effort in the schools to what’s typically done by ISD each year during cold and flu season, Tutwiler said.
For instance, hard surfaces are disinfected on a daily basis and if there’s a spike in absences related to the cold or flu in any particular school, there will be a deeper cleaning done. As a precautionary response to the virus, “high touch areas” such as door knobs, elevator buttons and handrails, are disinfected every day in each school, Tutwiler said.
Tutwiler said Callahan was “predictably energized” following Wednesday’s coronavirus announcement, but praised the school’s staff members, who were informed about the incident that same morning, for their professionalism throughout the day.
“I applaud the Callahan principal and staff,” said Tutwiler. “They came in this morning expecting a normal day and were presented with some information. But I watched them hear that information and immediately pivot to working with and teaching students in a very professional and expert way, and I applaud them for that.”
There will be a full discussion on what the school district has been doing in response to the growing concern around the coronavirus at Thursday’s School Committee meeting, which will be focused on what’s been communicated to parents, the district’s proactive efforts and what is being considered in terms of potential school closures.
In the meantime, a district correspondence advises Lynn families to wash their hands thoroughly with soap and water and use hand sanitizer and keep their children home if they have a fever.
