Turlock Unified School District reports rise in COVID cases driven by omicron surge
More than 150 students and staff reported testing positive for Covid-19 during Turlock Unified School District’s first week back from winter break. That’s at least four times as many than the case counts in weeks leading up to break.
A post on the district’s Twitter account Monday said the surge is caused by the omicron variant, which has led to record case numbers in Stanislaus County.
Nationally, the rise in cases has led to school closures and returns to online learning in several districts. Schools in Stanislaus County have continued in-person learning.
Turlock Unified school officials are working with Stanislaus County public health on a new plan for contact tracing, testing and reporting, according the Twitter post.
Spokeswoman Marie Russell said the district would share additional information with families Tuesday evening. Asked for comment on the rise in confirmed cases among district students and staff, she referred The Bee to the TUSD data dashboard.
From Jan. 3-7, Turlock Unified confirmed 114 cases among students and 39 cases among staff, according to the dashboard. This resulted in at least 1,338 people identified as close contacts. That figure may not reflect all close contacts due to winter break, a note on the dashboard said.
In the weeks leading up to the break, Turlock schools recorded less than 35 cases weekly, archived dashboards show.
Students in the Modesto City Schools district returned to campuses just Monday, Jan. 10.
People who test positive may need to isolate for as short as five days, according to statewide
guidance updated Jan. 8, Stanislaus County Health Services Agency spokeswoman Kamlesh Kaur told The Bee last week. Close contacts should still follow quarantine procedures set by California’s K-12 schools guidance, Kaur said.
To see the Turlock district’s COVID-19 dashboard and other updates, go to https://www.turlock.k12.ca.us/Page/2538.
Modesto City Schools’ dashboard is at www.mcs4kids.com/district/covid-19. Its weekly update will resume Tuesday, Jan. 18, after students have been back in school for a full week. The district recorded 17 daily cases on its first day back from winter break on Monday.
