Coronavirus in Oregon: Lake Oswego School District officials hold news conference

Officials with the Lake Oswego School District are expected to hold a news conference at noon Saturday after an employee at Forest Hills Elementary School was diagnosed as Oregon’s first presumptive case of coronavirus.

© Mark Graves | The Oregonian/OregonLive/oregonlive.com/TNS Forest Hills Elementary School in Lake Oswego. An employee at the school came down with Oregon\u2019s first apparent case of coronavirus.

12:30 p.m.

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Lake Oswego School District Superintendent Dr. Lora de la Cruz said that district officials would be working with state agencies to formulate a plan to discuss coronavirus with parents, teachers and students. Mary Kay Larson, communications director for the district, said she had received many calls from concerned parents.

12:25 p.m.

De la Cruz said that any staff members who felt ill were being asked to stay home and that the district would have an adequate number of substitutes to cover any staffing shortages. De la Cruz said that, despite the fact that Forest Hills Elementary School would be closed until March 4, they likely would not have to add any additional school days to the end of the year. She said the district had been planning for the possibility of a coronavirus diagnosis in the school district.

When de la Cruz was notified by the Oregon Health Authority that one of her employees had been diagnosed with the illness, it was a “somber moment.”

12:20 p.m.

Asked if the community could help, de la Cruz said the person who was diagnosed with coronavirus was being well cared for and their identity would not be released for privacy reasons. She declined to comment on whether the district had seen an elevated level of absences. Dr. Sara Present, deputy health officer for the tri-county region, said that school closures can be “incredibly impactful” for families and officials are asking businesses to work with their employees to accommodate child care.

12:15 p.m.

Lora de la Cruz said there is no reason to believe that any other schools in the district have been effected and no other closures are expected at this time. De la Cruz said an industrial cleaning crew was at the school on Saturday, evaluating the site and that cleaning could being as soon as this weekend.

12:05 p.m.

De la Cruz said that the last the time the infected employee was in the school was Feb. 19. Using that date, officials decided to close the school until March 4 to allow for a deep cleaning of the school, for employees to rest and remain healthy and for the recommended 14-day period to elapse. The closure was done out of an abundance of caution, she said.

The affected employee is not thought to have had extensive contact with students.

-- Kale Williams

kwilliams@oregonian.com

503-294-4048

@sfkale

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