Callaway County health officials announce non-WWU COVID-19 cases

[<a href="https://www.newstribune.com/news/health/" style="color:#33AEFF">access the News Tribune Health section</a>]

Five new cases of COVID-19 - including some not associated with William Woods University - have emerged in Callaway County.

One is travel-related; one patient was in close contact with a previous known case; and three are "community-acquired," meaning the source of the infection is unknown. The Callaway County Health Department was notified of these five cases over the course of Friday and Saturday. Until Thursday, all known cases in the county had been found among WWU students.

"Epidemic investigations have been completed on these three new positives and their close contacts have been notified and advised to isolate in place for the next 14 days," the CCHD release added.

Callaway County and the City of Fulton have announced a new website to help keep the public informed about the latest COVID-19 updates. The most recent cases were announced on the new site.

The website, callawaycovid19.com, includes information collected from the Callaway County Health Department, Callaway County Emergency Management, local law enforcement and city and county entities.

Despite the county's best efforts, it's increasingly difficult to tell how many of those who've tested positive remain in Callaway County. Callaway County Health Department Executive Director Sharon Lynch described the confusion Saturday afternoon.

"There were students who got tested and left the area before they ever got the test results back," Lynch said. "There's one we got today that was sent to a different county and turned out to be ours; it came in at the last minute."

Lynch said the Callaway County Health Department has, as of Saturday afternoon, conducted epidemiological investigations on 13 cases in the county.

She was unable to specify how many of those investigations involved William Woods students; she also couldn't specify how many of the patients remained in Callaway County. She declined to state where in the county the non-WWU cases had been detected, citing patient privacy.

According to John Fougere, William Woods spokesperson, 13 WWU students had tested positive as of Friday evening, but only eight were still in the area.

"As of yesterday, there were five students who tested positive in monitored isolation still residing on the WWU campus," he said in an email Saturday afternoon. "There were three students who tested positive who were no longer on campus but in Fulton under the care of their local health provider. Another five students who tested positive have left the area."

Schools

Schools across the county have decided to extend closures.

Fulton Public Schools, and the New Bloomfield R-2 and South Callaway R-2 school districts will remain closed through April 24, with students expected to come back to class Monday, April 27.

In Fulton, students were sent home before the closure with activity packets and online resources to last through April 3. The district is working on a plan for the remaining weeks.

Grab and go meals will still be available for Fulton students at McIntire Elementary and Fulton High School from 11 a.m.-1 p.m.

Throughout the closure, with the exception of spring break from March 23-27, New Bloomfield school buses have been delivering sack lunches to all students eligible for free and reduced lunch, as well as any other students who contacted the district to opt-in - this will continue.

In an email, New Bloomfield Superintendent Sarah Wisdom said the district will continue distance learning and plans to iron out more details early next week.

"(Our) hopes are always this will take a turn for the better and we can return sooner than the date of April 24," Wisdom wrote. "Giving that date just allows us some time to monitor the situation and make plans."

The North Callaway R-1 School District hopes to return to school April 28.

North Callaway will continue providing food for students during the closure -meal pick-ups including two breakfasts and two lunches are available Tuesdays and Thursdays. Parents interested in receiving meals for their children should contact North Callaway administrators.

South Callaway will deliver two-day food boxes on Monday, Wednesday and Friday using school buses beginning April 1. On April 8, the buses will also deliver assignment packets for all kindergarten, first grade and second grade students, as well as older students who opted to receive hard copy assignments.

Gov. Mike Parson announced Tuesday that Missouri is canceling all statewide, required assessments for the school year. At the same time, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has also waived requirements for student teachers.

Schools are not required to make up any time lost due to COVID-19 closures, and missed days will not impact the calculation of average daily attendance - an important measure in determining state funding. This means low attendance due to the pandemic will not impact payments to schools.