Hamilton schools report eight new COVID-19 cases

Hamilton's public and Catholic boards are reporting eight new cases of COVID-19 among its schools.

Two students at St. Mary Catholic Secondary School, one student at Gordon Price Elementary School, one student at Nora Frances Henderson Secondary School, one student at Sir Allan MacNab Secondary School and one student at Lake Avenue Elementary School have tested positive for COVID.

A staff member working at both Dundana Elementary School and Frank Panabaker Elementary School has also tested positive, therefore they are counted as one case, according to Shawn McKillop, spokesperson for the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board.

The two students at St. Mary Catholic Secondary School were last in the building on Oct. 16, according to a letter sent to families Wednesday. The board was notified of the results late Tuesday and Wednesday morning.

The additional cases follow the confirmation of a case in a student on Tuesday - they were also last in the building on Oct. 16.

Two classrooms at the school have been closed, according to the board's COVID-19 advisory report.

In an email to The Spectator, Hamilton public health spokesperson Jacqueline Durlov said as of Thursday, an outbreak has not been declared at the school, as it does not meet the criteria of a school outbreak.

According to provincial guidelines, an outbreak is defined as two or more lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases in students or staff in one school. An outbreak is declared if these cases are connected in some way or if a link between the two can't be ruled out.

At Gordon Price Elementary, the student was also last in the building on Oct. 16, principal Brian Patton wrote in a letter to parents. The positive rest result was confirmed to the board on Wednesday.

(Hamilton public health) has consulted on this case and have assessed that there are no student or staff close contacts related to this case - including before- and after-school care and school bus transportation," said Patton.

He added that the student was not in the building when there would be a risk of exposure" and public health officials consider the risk to other students and staff to be low.

At Nora Frances Henderson Secondary School, the student was last in the building on Oct. 15. The positive rest result was confirmed to the board on Wednesday.

The class of students as well as the teacher associated with the case have been instructed to self-isolate, principal Timothy Powell-McBride said in a letter to parents.

At Sir Allan MacNab Secondary School, the student was last in the building on Oct. 13. The positive rest result was confirmed to the board on Tuesday.

But principal Gregory Clark said there are no close contacts related to the student, the student was not in the building when there would be a risk of exposure" and public health considers the risk to others as low.

The new case follows another student testing positive on Monday, but the board has been instructed by public health that an outbreak would not be declared at the school at the present time," wrote Clark.

At Lake Avenue Elementary School, the student was last in the building on Tuesday. The board was notified of the positive result on Wednesday.

The class of students as well as staff members associated with the case have been instructed to self-isolate, principal Rob Maudsley said in a letter to parents.

He added that the student had no close contacts in the before-and-after school programming and did not use transportation.

At both Dundana Elementary School and Frank Panabaker Elementary School, the staff member that tested positive did not provide direct instruction to students," according to letters sent to families.

Their last time in each building was Oct. 7. The board was notified of the positive result on Wednesday.

The risk to students and staff is low and there are no student cohorts impacted," read the letters.

As of Thursday, Hamilton's school boards have reported at least 16 new cases of COVID-19 this week.

There have been two instances of transmission within a Hamilton school to date.

Fallon Hewitt is a Hamilton-based reporter at The Spectator. Reach her via email: fhewitt@thespec.com