ST. JOHN, Wash. -- The flu has essentially wiped out one small eastern Washington school district. Administrators with the St.John-Endicott School District decided to cancel school for the next two days.
This is the second time the district has closed due to an influenza outbreak.
The St.John-Endicott School District is small. It has around 260 students. When one-third are out with the flu, there are not many children left to teach.
"In our algebra 2 class today, I think we had four people there today. All my best friends are gone except for a few of them," said sophomore Dakota White.
The flu struck last week and attendance continued to drop into this week. Superintendent Rick Winters said the decision to close is a matter of efficiency.
"It's a fairly easy decision to say that tomorrow was not going to be a productive student learning day," said Winters.
He compares it to a snow day. The extra days are built into the school year. The Whitman County Nurses Program suggested the closure. Friday and Monday were already scheduled time off. It is hoped the extra long weekend will give time for the community to recoup and disinfect.
"We fully expect that we're going to air out the building and disinfect everything we can. We hope that on Tuesday good numbers return and everyone is healthy and happy," said Winters.
Winters said he needed the support of the school board and the teachers union to have the flu day.
Parents with questions relating this decision are asked to contact the school district at (509) 648-3336 or (509) 657-3523.
