Nearly 200 students at a Santa Monica middle school may have been exposed to norovirus during a recent trip to Yosemite, and students at nearby schools may have spread the virus elsewhere, officials said Thursday.
The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District said that students from John Adams Middle School were on a five-day trip to Yosemite last week when some participants showed signs of gastrointestinal illness.
Several teachers and parents were also potentially exposed, according to a letter sent to parents and staff and published on the school district’s website. It’s unclear how many people were infected in total.
School officials notified parents of students at John Adams Middle School on Sunday, and officials at the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health have helped trace the outbreak to the Yosemite trip.
About 190 7th-graders were on the trip, along with the teachers and parents. The group returned Friday from Yosemite but did not step onto campus until classes resumed Monday morning, district officials said.
Officials believe the same illness spread to other students at the school who were not on the Yosemite trip, as well as to siblings who attend other schools within the district.
“The challenge with this highly contagious illness is that a child or adult may still feel well when they are contagious, making containment difficult,” according to the district’s letter.
School officials said they were working with public health officials to prevent the spread of the illness. Classrooms and other facilities were being cleaned with special products recommended by public health officials.
On the trip, students rode by bus to Yosemite and slept in tents in Curry Village and dormitories in Crane Flat. The trip was billed as a way to stay “far away from any shiny screens and electronics,” according to the school’s website.
Norovirus is a contagious organism that can be spread through contaminated food or water and human interaction, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Between 19 million and 21 million illnesses are caused by norovirus each year, and it is considered the most common cause of food-borne disease outbreaks in the U.S.
Those infected typically experience inflammation of the stomach and intestines as well as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and stomach pain.
Ali Vayeghan was one of an unknown number of people whose plans were disrupted by President Trump's entry ban. UC Berkeley was home of the free speech movement. Today, California's flagship university is under fire from the right and left. Tread cautiously. That's how Super Bowl advertisers are feeling in the fraught political landscape. Snapchat app maker Snap's IPO filing might be the biggest ever for a Los Angeles company.
Ali Vayeghan was one of an unknown number of people whose plans were disrupted by President Trump's entry ban. UC Berkeley was home of the free speech movement. Today, California's flagship university is under fire from the right and left. Tread cautiously. That's how Super Bowl advertisers are feeling in the fraught political landscape. Snapchat app maker Snap's IPO filing might be the biggest ever for a Los Angeles company.
Ali Vayeghan was one of an unknown number of people whose plans were disrupted by President Trump's entry ban. UC Berkeley was home of the free speech movement. Today, California's flagship university is under fire from the right and left. Tread cautiously. That's how Super Bowl advertisers are feeling in the fraught political landscape. Snapchat app maker Snap's IPO filing might be the biggest ever for a Los Angeles company.
Ali Vayeghan was one of an unknown number of people whose plans were disrupted by President Trump's entry ban. UC Berkeley was home of the free speech movement. Today, California's flagship university is under fire from the right and left. Tread cautiously. That's how Super Bowl advertisers are feeling in the fraught political landscape. Snapchat app maker Snap's IPO filing might be the biggest ever for a Los Angeles company.
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A speech by conservative firebrand and Milo Yiannopoulos was canceled at UC Berkeley on Wednesday amid violent protests that prompted President Trump to suggest cutting funding to the university.
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Two Republicans senators have defected and will vote against Betsy DeVos for secretary of Education. Could President Trump’s proposed 20% border tax set off an international food fight? Are emails and texts sent on the personal devices of government employees a public record? 22,000 new U.S. factory jobs could be generated by limiting car imports from Mexico.
Two Republicans senators have defected and will vote against Betsy DeVos for secretary of Education. Could President Trump’s proposed 20% border tax set off an international food fight? Are emails and texts sent on the personal devices of government employees a public record? 22,000 new U.S. factory jobs could be generated by limiting car imports from Mexico.
Neil M. Gorsuch, a highly regarded conservative jurist best known for upholding religious liberty rights in the legal battles over Obamacare, is President Trump's Supreme Court nominee.
Neil M. Gorsuch, a highly regarded conservative jurist best known for upholding religious liberty rights in the legal battles over Obamacare, is President Trump's Supreme Court nominee.
matt.hamilton@latimes.com
Twitter: @MattHjourno
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