Valley Stream Memorial staff member tests positive for coronavirus; schools to close for a day, district says

A staff member at Valley Stream Memorial Junior High School reported she has tested positive for coronavirus, and following state Department of Health guidelines, all Central High School District schools will close Friday, according to a letter sent to parents by Schools Superintendent Dr. Bill Heidenreich.

Additionally, all activities scheduled to take place in district buildings are canceled for the weekend.

Heidenreich reported that during the closure, all CHSD facilities will be disinfected according to DOH guidelines, and that a professional cleaning service will be brought in to clean Memorial. District custodial staff will clean Central, South and North high schools. He said he expected district schools to reopen Monday.

The report comes in addition to one on Monday afternoon that the spouse of a Shaw Avenue faculty member had undergone coronavirus testing with flu-like symptoms and had entered a 14-day, self-quarantine while awaiting results. Although the faculty member was not exhibiting signs of illness, they, too, begun a 14-day, self-quarantine and as of Thursday was still healthy District 30 officials said.

As of Thursday afternoon, 40 Nassau County residents had tested positive for the COVID-19 strain of coronavirus, including 31 cases in the Town of Hempstead, Nassau County Executive Laura Curran said during a news conference this morning. Six more tested positive in the Town of North Hempstead and three in the Town of Oyster Bay. One of the 40 is an 81-year-old resident at The Bristal Assisted Living facility at North Hills, where staff have launched a thorough disinfecting and are investigating whether anyone has come in contact with the infected resident.

Of the 40 patients, 10 are being hospitalized, and one is in critical condition.

Additionally, Curran said, 192 Nassau residents are in mandatory quarantine, and 82 are in precautionary quarantine as more and more people are being tested for the virus.