Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Swine flu in Chicago?

Probable swine flu closes Rogers Park school - Chicago Breaking News: "The decision to close the school was made Tuesday after the state reported the probable case to CPS and the system noticed an unusually high absentee rate at the school (see map), Huberman said.

Attendance at the school is normally 94 to 96 percent, but it was 87 percent on Tuesday, Huberman said. That was 'clearly enough of a differential' to warrant the closing. He said the school would be closed 'indefinitely,' but at least for two days.

The Kilmer student population of 850 is 60 percent Hispanic. It has a teaching staff of 46. The school is also in a heavily Hispanic populated area of the Rogers Park neighborhood. The swine flu has taken its heaviest toll in Mexico."

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This flu was going around in Mexico during March and April, when US schools were on spring break. A whole lot of people went from the US to Mexico for vacations, and when they came back they went back to school. I would assume that schools are a major transmission point for this virus.

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