SWINE FLU SHUTDOWN

Swine flu fears continued to tighten their grip around the city as of press time Wednesday afternoon, May 20, as increasingly worried parents and local lawmakers pressed for more school closings.

As of 5 p.m. Wednesday, 28 public and private schools throughout the city have been closed due to swine flu fears.

Among the public schools closed are P.S. 16 and P.S. 19 in Corona, I.S. 5 in Elmhurst, I.S. 238 in Hollis, J.H.S. 74, P.S. 130 and M.S. 158 in Bayside, P.S. 32, I.S. 25, P.S. 233, P.S. 242, P.S. 107 and World Journalism Preparatory (a charter school) in Flushing, P.S. 209 in Whitestone, P.S. 35 in Jamaica, Merrick Academy Charter School in Queens Village, I.S. 318 in East Williamsburg, P.S. 130 in Manhattan and all three locations of the South Bronx Charter School, as well as District 75 schools P9, P255 and Q233.

According to the Department of Education (DOE), the public schools were shut down based on recommendations from the city Health Department (DOH); the two agencies have been operating in concert, with dual agency-branded letters to parents whose children attend the shuttered schools. I.S. 238 (the only school with confirmed cases of the illness), P.S. 16, I.S. 5, P9 and P255 are scheduled to open Friday, May 22. All other public schools are scheduled to reopen on Tuesday, May 26.

For the most up-to-date information, visit schools.nyc.gov.

The closed private schools include Holy Family School in Flushing, St. Joseph's and San Demetrios in Astoria, Our Lady of Lourdes in Queens Village, Horace Mann School in the Bronx, The Child Legacy School on Roosevelt Island and St. David's School in Manhattan.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the swine flu, known scientifically as the H1N1 virus, was first detected in April, and has also been found in Canada and Mexico, spreading in much the same way that normal flu spreads.

The symptoms of the H1N1 virus are similar to that of more common influenzas, according to the CDC; "fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue."

The virus can be fatal, however; I.S. 235 assistant principal Mitchell Wiener died from the virus on May 17.

"We are now seeing a rising tide of flu in many parts of New York City," said outgoing New York City Health Commissioner Thomas R. Frieden on Sunday, May 17. "With the virus spreading widely, closing these and other individual schools will make little difference in transmission throughout New York City, but we hope will help slow transmission within the individual school communities."

"Given the large number of cases, he added, "it is entirely possible that in the coming days there will be people with severe illness from flu, par- ticularly among people who have underlying health problems."

Schools Chancellor Joel Klein announced that curriculum materials will be provided online or at the schools for parents to pick up for their children.

Call for shutdown

"It makes no sense. Just close them all in one shot," District 24 Community Education Council (CEC 24) President Nick Comaianni told the Times Newsweekly.

Comaianni, in a phone interview on Tuesday, May 19, stated that he has been lobbying for all District 24 schools to be shut down for a decontamination, but to no avail.

Of the schools closed, P.S. 16, P.S. 19 and I.S. 5 are in his district.

Adding to his call on Tuesday was City Council Member Elizabeth Crowley.

"Given the high number of student and teacher absences, coupled with the tragic death of Assistant Principal Wiener ... I believe we must close all the schools in District 24, one of the city's most infected areas," Crowley said in a press release. "I believe it is important that we allow cleaning crews enough time to sanitize the schools in order to stop the spread of the virus and to ease concerns of parents, teachers, students and administrators throughout the area."

Students and parents at P.S. 121 in South Ozone Park also protested in front of the school on Wednesday, May 20, calling for the school to be closed.

Meanwhile, according to news reports, the United Federation of Teachers (UFT) claims that as many as 40 city schools have seen attendance rates drop.The DOH is reportedly running tests at these schools to see if they are safe, monitoring every school on an individual basis.

"My staff is monitoring every single school in which we see a lot of kids getting sick, in which we see a drop in attendance, and where we see some confirmed cases," said UFT President Randi Weingarten at I.S. 73 in Maspeth on Monday, May 18.

At the press conference, Chancellor Joel Klein urged teachers and students who feel ill to stay home.

According to Crowley, 330 students were absent from I.S. 73 on Monday, May 18; by Tuesday, Comaianni noted, that number had risen to 450, or 26.5 percent of students.

Comaianni added that at I.S. 119 in Glendale, 16 teachers have been absent. "You cannot teach with 16 teachers out," he said.

The UFT has set up several hotlines for School Districts 24 to 30, as well as separate phone numbers for Queens high schools, the remaining boroughs and Districts 75 and 79. UFT school chapter leaders have been told to call in to report student and faculty attendance rates; parents can also call in to obtain reports.

The UFT in turn is disseminating the information to the city Health and Education departments.

The numbers can be found at www.uft.org/news/uft_sets_up_hotlines/.

Pols criticize city response

In separate press releases, City Council Members Tony Avella and Eric Gioia criticized the city for failing to close the schools sooner.

"It is absolutely clear that Mike Bloomberg and DOH failed to hear the concerns of parents and through their inaction allowed the spread of this virus," stated Avella, whose district encompasses several of the schools. "As I suggested back in late April, a more aggressive approach should have been taken to close public schools in Northeast Queens. There is no doubt in my mind that by taking preemptive measures we could have helped quell the number of cases within New York City."

"I implore the Mayor and DOH to take further action and close any school that has a possible case of the virus," he added. "It is only by limiting the contact between students and disinfecting the classrooms that we can effectively prevent any further spreading of the virus."

"I am gravely concerned that the city is failing to provide important information in a timely way," said Gioia. "New Yorkers have a right to know information. If a school is safe than the city needs to not only say it is, but give parents the all the information they need to make a decision for their kids."

Assemblyman Jose Peralta is hosting a town hall meeting on the swine flu outbreak tonight (May 21) at Our Lady of Sorrows, located at 35-34 105th St. in Corona, at 6 p.m.

Representatives of the Education and Health departments are confirmed to attend.