2 Sacramento schools say ‘community members’ were possibly exposed to coronavirus

At least two Sacramento City Unified schools announced to families and staff that school community members were potentially exposed to COVID-19 and were in self-quarantine. Both campuses had been deep cleaned.

Community members at Leonardo da Vinci School and C.K. McClatchy High School were potentially exposed to the virus, according to statements sent out to families.

McClatchy High School Principal Peter Lambert notified parents Friday morning that the information was shared out of caution and Sacramento County Public Health officials did not recommend the person to be quarantined

“Sacramento County Public Health reassured us that all school activities should continue as normal,” read Lambert’s email.

Leonardo da Vinci School officials told parents that “a few” community members from their school were possibly exposed, but are not showing symptoms of the virus.

Both schools were deep cleaned before students arrived for class Friday morning.

Valley View Charter Montessori School in Buckeye Union School District also informed parents that a staff member may have been exposed to the virus, while the person exhibits no symptoms, the individual will not return to school until it is confirmed they are not infected.

School officials did not specify who the exposed community members were, but dozens of registered nurses and health care workers at UC Davis Medical Center were told to go home, isolate themselves and monitor their symptoms after being exposed to a patient who was diagnosed with COVID-19 after a week in the facility.

Separately in Placer County, 10 Kaiser Permanente health care workers and five emergency responders also were exposed to COVID-19 while caring for a patient prior to diagnosis. Thus far, none has exhibited symptoms of the disease, but all have been quarantined and are being monitored, county officials said.

School districts in Placer and Sacramento counties are taking guidance from local health officials, including the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in deciding how to plan or cancel future school events.

Many schools are sending home reminders on how to protect children from getting sick, including how to wash their hands. Schools increased their cleaning protocol, including using state-recommended cleaning materials. In Placer County, custodians are cleaning desks, keyboards, doorknobs and even school buses.

And like the rest of the nation, some Sacramento area school officials began to discuss how to implement online distance learning if they are asked by county officials to shut down.

Lowell High School in San Francisco is closed Friday after officials there learned a relative of a student there was being treated for coronavirus.

Coronavirus is spread through contact between people within six feet of each other, especially through coughing and sneezing that expels respiratory droplets that land in the mouths or noses of people nearby. The CDC says it’s possible to catch the disease COVID-19 by touching something that has the virus on it, and then touching your own face, “but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.”

Symptoms of the virus that causes COVID-19 include fever, cough and shortness of breath, which may occur two days to two weeks after exposure. Most develop only mild symptoms, but some people develop more severe symptoms, including pneumonia, which can be fatal. The disease is especially dangerous to the elderly and others with weaker immune systems.

So far, close to 100,000 cases have been reported worldwide, with about 3,300 deaths, the vast majority of them in China. In the U.S., 230 cases have been reported, including 14 deaths in Washington state out of 70 confirmed cases. In California, the first death was reported Wednesday, with 60 positive tests reported.

This story was originally published March 6, 2020 at 9:18 AM.