Health Department Closes Two More Schools for Flu

NEW YORK—The City Health Department Wednesday announced closures of two more schools over a high number of cases of “influenza-like illness.” The Health Department and Education Department announced in a press release that the closures of P.S. 242, in Flushing, and P. S. 130 (including part of P.S 993), in Bayside, are effective Thursday, and will continue for up to five school days.

The city has been closing schools in response to the H1N1 virus, commonly known as “swine flu.” The latest closures make a total of 24 schools citywide closed in the past two weeks.

In a related announcement, the Department of Education announced that they began posting attendance rates for every public school in the city, in response to popular interest. The attendance is posted online at http://schools.nyc.gov/Home/Spotlight/closures.htm.

The DOE emphasized that high absence rates at a particular school does not necessarily indicate an outbreak of flu.

The Health Department and Education Department say they are working together to determine which schools should be closed. They say there is no simple rule or formula for closing schools. But one factor for making a decision to close would be a sudden increase in students visiting the school nurse with symptoms of a fever above 100.4 degrees accompanied by a cough or sore throat.

To date, two people in the city have died from swine flu, one school official and one baby. The World Health Organization has declared swine flu a pandemic.

City Schools Closed Due to Flu as of Thursday, May 21

A total of 24 public schools and programs—20 in Queens, 1 in Brooklyn, 2 in the Bronx, and 1 in Manhattan—are currently closed. These schools have experienced unusually high levels of influenza-like illness in recent days.

    * PS 16Q—reopening Friday, May 22
    * P255 (District 75 program located at PS 16Q)—reopening Friday, May 22
    * IS 5Q—reopening Friday, May 22
    * P9 (District 75 program located at IS 5Q)—reopening Friday, May 22
    * IS 238Q—reopening Friday, May 22 for staff and Tuesday, May 26 for students
    * JHS 74Q—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * PS 107Q—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * MS 158Q—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * IS 25Q—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * World Journalism Preparatory (located at IS 25Q)—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * Q233 (District 75 program located at IS 25Q)—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * IS 318K—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * PS 19Q—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * PS 32Q—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * PS 209Q—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * P9 (District 75 program located at PS 209Q)—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * PS 130M—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * PS 35Q—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * Merrick Academy Charter School (located in Queens)—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * PS 242Q—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * PS 130Q—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * Q993 (District 75 program located at PS 130Q)—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * South Bronx Charter School for International Culture & the Arts (all three locations)—reopening Tuesday, May 26
    * Charter High School for Architecture, Engineering, and Construction Industries (located in the Bronx)—reopening Tuesday, May 26

All of these schools are closed based on recommendations from the New York City Department of Health with the exception of the two charter schools in the Bronx, which made their own decisions to close.