Penn-Trafford coronavirus outbreak continues
Another Penn-Trafford elementary school will close, joining two others, after more cases of coronavirus were reported to the district Thursday.
Two staff members at Sunrise, one staff member at Harrison Park and one Level Green student notified the district they tested positive, the district said.
Harrison Park now has had two positive cases within 14 days, requiring it to close beginning Friday for five days, based on education department guidelines. The school will reopen on Oct. 14.
Sunrise Elementary, which has four cases, will remain closed until Oct. 22. A 14-day closure is in compliance with state Department of Education guidelines.
Level Green now has eight positive cases and will remain closed until Oct. 15.
The increase in covid-19 cases among Penn-Trafford students and staff comes as Westmoreland County is experiencing a significant spike in the number of cases. Thursday brought 69 new cases, the highest single-day increase to date.
Contact tracing is being conducted at the three schools and the district will send an email to parents and staff when that is complete.
While the schools are closed, students at the three elementary schools will receive remote instruction.
The remaining Penn-Trafford schools will remain open, but any staff members who worked at the three elementary schools and typically offered instruction at the other buildings will not be allowed to work so they can be monitored for symptoms.
The district can‘t release confidential information due to privacy laws, Superintendent Matthew Harris said.
Joe Napsha is a TribLive reporter covering Irwin, North Huntingdon and the Norwin School District. He also writes about business issues. He grew up on Neville Island and has worked at the Trib since the early 1980s. He can be reached at jnapsha@triblive.com.
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.