BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – Viera Charter School will close for the holidays a day early because of an outbreak of a stomach virus.
About 40 children have experienced norovirus-like symptoms, which include stomachaches, vomiting and diarrhea that can last for a few days. More than 400 students, or almost half the school, have been absent the last two days, News 6 partners Florida Today reported.
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Principal Julie Cady said because so many parents kept their kids home this week, the school decided to begin winter vacation a day early and close Wednesday.
"School administration exercised an abundance of caution because we didn't want to put our students and their families at risk," Cady said.
After a visit to the school, the Brevard County Health Department determined that the children had most likely contracted norovirus, a highly contagious stomach virus that usually flares up during the colder months. The virus can spread quickly in closed areas to those who come in contact with surfaces, food and other people who have been infected.
"The school administration took appropriate actions to prevent the spread of the virus by sanitizing the school this week and contracting with a service to perform a deep clean of the total facilities during the winter vacation," principal Julie Cady said.
"We have had over 400 students absent for the past two days, not necessarily because they were sick, but instead some parents wanted to ere on the side of caution to prevent their children from contacting the virus,"Cady aded.
The charter school was scheduled to close Thursday, the start of winter break, but instead will close Wednesday so that the school can be deep cleaned by a contracted service. The facility was also sanitized over the weekend.
So far, the virus seems to be isolated to Viera Charter School. A Brevard Public Schools official said the district had not heard of any cases in the public schools, where winter break is still scheduled to begin on Thursday.
The Health Department, which continues to monitor the situation, recommends that residents wash their hands regularly and disinfect areas that could become infected. Anyone experiencing virus like symptoms should drink plenty of water and see a physician as soon as possible.
A similar outbreak was reported last week in Vero Beach where about 60 students from Gifford Middle School in Indian River County became sick.