KSD to close temporarily amid coronavirus concern

The Kellogg School District announced Monday that it will close all its schools beginning Wednesday and remain closed through spring break.

After initially deciding on Sunday that school would continue forward as normal, the Kellogg School Board and Superintendent Nancy Larsen decided that they would indeed follow suit with the nearby Coeur d’Alene School District and cancel classes.

“Our closure decisions were made with many factors in mind; however, at this point there are NO verified cases of COVID-19 through Panhandle Health District,” the Kellogg School District stated in a press release. “Instead, our decisions are based on lowered attendance due to prevention measures.”

On Tuesday, students that attended school were given plans for providing instruction materials and food services. Classes in the KSD will be canceled from Wednesday to April 6 — after spring break.

Although it is extremely difficult to replicate classroom instruction, efforts will be made to continue instruction through alternate formats. Teachers will be working from home to support students.

The decision for the district to come to this course of action was not an easy one, as classes are not the only thing that are affected when school is canceled.

For many children, going to school is the only option they have for obtaining food and meals.

KSD states that meals will be provided through local drop-off sites from school buses on Monday, March 23. Information regarding this drop off would have been provided to students on March 17. If a student did not attend school that day, specific times and locations of these drop offs can be obtained by visiting the KSD website.

“We will work diligently to adhere to social distancing guidelines while recognizing many of our students rely upon this source for nourishment,” KSD stated.

School officials will continue to monitor local, regional and national conditions to make decisions about reopening on Monday, April 6.

While KSD has decided to shut their doors temporarily, the neighboring Wallace and Mullan school districts will remain open as of March 16.

Officials of both districts are monitoring their respective stations closely and are also in close contact with medical professionals.

Schools have not been the only local entities affected by the recent uptick in coronavirus precautions. Local businesses have been affected in many ways depending on the goods or services they provide.

Silver Valley grocery stores for example have seen a huge spike in shoppers, but panic buying has caused many of their shelves to become bare.

Normally well stocked sections and aisles that once offered meat, dairy items, canned/bottled goods, medical supplies, cleaning products and toilet paper now look eerily reminiscent of scenes from post-apocalypse films.

This mass hoarding has caused many stores to react by limiting purchases of select items to one person/household per person.

The national trend has become such an issue in Idaho that Idaho Gov. Brad Little took to Twitter on Sunday in an attempt to calm people’s nerves.

“There is no shortage of food. Stores will restock, so please don’t hoard,” he tweeted. “The water supply is clean and safe to drink. We are working to provide you with the latest, most accurate information. We are in this together, so please take care of yourself and your neighbors.”

For other businesses that rely on patronage, many have had to shut their doors until the crisis passes. This also goes for the many who had scheduled events that are now postponed or canceled.

The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare and the seven local Public Health Districts updated guidance for event and venue managers to assist with decisions regarding mass gatherings and public events during the COVID-19 pandemic on March 16.

Idaho public health experts recommend that organizers (whether groups or individuals) postpone or cancel mass gatherings and public events in any of the following situations:

• The event will draw audiences or participants from communities, states or countries with confirmed community spread of COVID-19 disease. Your local public health district can assist you in making this determination.

• The event will consist of 50 people or more people. This is recommended for the next eight (8) weeks.

• The event’s primary audience includes or may expose high-risk populations, including adults over the age of 60 years and people with underlying chronic medical conditions like heart or lung disease or diabetes, regardless of the number of attendees.

For those who have the ability, it is recommend that event and venue managers consider using virtual gatherings (e.g., webinar, video conferencing, live stream, etc.) as a mechanism to minimize the risk of COVID-19 exposure to the general public and vulnerable populations, when possible.

Facilities housing large numbers of people (such as long-term care facilities, jails and corrections, shelters, etc.) should implement policies as soon as possible to minimize risk to their populations by limiting visitors, providing proper handwashing and hygiene facilities for staff, visitors and residents and enhancing screening for staff and visitors for symptoms of COVID-19.

Symptoms of COVID-19 generally include flu-like symptoms, a fever of 100.4 degrees or higher and/or respiratory infection symptoms including cough and shortness of breath.

There is currently no vaccine to prevent coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The best way to prevent illness is to avoid being exposed to this virus.

“We all must take steps now to protect ourselves and others, including washing hands often, practicing social distancing — keeping 6 feet between you and others, staying home if you are sick, covering coughs and sneezes, wearing a facemask only if you are sick, and cleaning frequently touched surfaces with bleach wipes or a sanitizing spray,” PHD stated in a news release.

The News-Press will continue to follow the effects of the coronavirus situation and report on how the community is dealing with these challenging times. Before going out to a business or attending an event, the News-Press recommends contacting the business or organizer to see if it is still open/set to occur.