Abu Dhabi: Scores of students at a private school in the capital were sent home early on Wednesday after eight students of a class fell sick, officials said.
Authorities at the International Community School, which has around 1,400 pupils, said the children were sent back as a precautionary measure.
“Eight pupils in a single section were running low to moderate fever up to 38.6 degrees Celsius. Having this many children sick at proximity seemed a bit unusual, so we decided to send them home, along with other children they may have come into contact with,” Derek Griffin, principal at the school, told Gulf News.
He confirmed that the sick children are from a section of Grade 4.
“And to exercise further caution, there will be no classes tomorrow (January 28) for pupils in Grades 3 and 4 as we would like to disinfect those classrooms. I would like to assuage parents’ fears and inform them that nothing untoward or serious has happened. We are just taking precautions,” Griffin added.
Some parents who had contacted Gulf News said they were waiting for an official word from the school. “My three children attend the school, and my eldest child called me at midday asking me to take them home. The word was that there was some flu going around, but I do know what exactly happened,” said a father.
The emirate’s education sector regulator, the Abu Dhabi Education Council (Adec), said: “Eight pupils were reported to be having high fever of 38.6 [degrees Celsius] in the morning, as reported by a Grade 4 classroom teacher at the International Community School in Mushrif, Abu Dhabi. One child was noted having mild fever. The pupil with the highest fever was isolated. The parents of the eight students were contacted and asked to pick up their children. No vomiting, diarrhoea, or difficulty in breathing were reported,” the Adec statement added.
“As a precautious measure, the school principal has decided to close Grades 3 and 4 in order to ensure that there are no cases of contamination, since the two grades are within proximity to each other. Parents whose children are in Grades 3 and 4 [have already been] advised to monitor their children’s temperature and report to the nearest hospital in case of high fever,” it added.
The Adec also said that it had “taken immediate action upon receipt of a telephone call from the school, reporting the case”. In addition, Adec personnel directed the school to immediately call the ambulance and the Civil Defence, while a team of officials visited the school.
“The school has already communicated with Health Authority Abu Dhabi and are awaiting further directions from them. Adec is [also] awaiting receipt of a written report of the incident from the school principal in light of its policies,” the statement added.