Georgia School Quarantines Over 900 Staff, Students Due to Covid-19 Outbreak

A Georgia school district has quarantined 925 staff and students following possible exposure to the coronavirus. Etowah High School, one of six schools in the county, has also now been temporarily closed. They had only reopened for in-person instruction to around 30,000 students last week. By yesterday morning, 59 people in the county had tested positive for the virus. At least 14 were students. 15 more students are still awaiting their test results. The school’s superintendent said “we are not hesitating to quarantine students and staff who have had possible exposure – even if the positive test was prompted by possible exposure rather than symptoms, as all positive cases can lead to the infection of others.” Distanced learning and extracurricular athletics are expected to resume on August 31st. Similarly, the Georgia high school that made headlines last week after suspending a student for posting a viral photo of a crowded hallway was also briefly closed following a Covid outbreak.