GENESEE ORLEANS/Health Dept./Holley High School student tests positive for COVID-19, contact tracing is ongoing along with precautionary cleaning and disinfecting

COVID-19 Update

For IMMEDIATE RELEASE

“The Orleans County Health Department (OCHD) has received that a Holley High School student has tested positive for COVID-19,” stated Paul Pettit, Director of the Genesee and Orleans County Health Departments.

“The last day this student was on the Holley campus (MS/HS) was the morning of Wednesday, October 21st. The District and the Health Department are unable to legally disclose any further details or personal identifiable information about this student per the Federal privacy laws.”

“The school learned about the positive case before school this morning and ordered precautionary cleaning and disinfection of the area the student was last in. The student did not report to school today,” stated Brian Bartalo, Superintendent of Holley Central SchHolly High ool District.

The District is working with the Orleans County Health Department and the New York State (NYS) COVID-19 School Specialists to assist with contact tracing. The OCHD will go back 48 hours from the onset of symptoms or the date of the test, to determine any order of quarantining of individuals of close contact with the student. In this case, that would start on Monday, October 19th. As a member of the “White Hawk” cohort, the student who tested positive was not in school on Monday or Tuesday this week. Any communication of the need for quarantine will come directly from the health department or the NYS School Liaison. If the OCHD indicates there is anything further that needs to occur at the school building or District level, families will be updated.

If your child receives confirmation that they have tested positive for COVID-19, please contact your school’s nurse or principal immediately so we can help the OCHD most efficiently begin the contact tracing process. It’s also important to remember that any student who has COVID-19 symptoms or has been tested, should not be reporting to school until cleared by a medical professional and/or have a negative test result.

“In addition to working closely with the health department, we will continue to reinforce the best practices of mask wearing, staying physically distant from others, and handwashing,” Bartalo stated.

Symptoms of COVID-19 include but are not limited to: fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, diarrhea. For information on school statistics, please visit the New York State COVID-19 Report Card.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *