Covid cases rise in local schools
Covid-19 cases at North Canterbury schools are on the rise.
Twelve Rangiora High School students have tested positive for Covid-19, as of Tuesday.
Two of those cases were first reported at the weekend, and a group of senior students were identified as most at risk of having contact during the infectious period from Monday to Thursday last week.
Students not deemed close contacts could continue normal day-to-day school activities, although all had been advised to watch for symptoms, principal Karen Stewart said.
At Kaiapoi High School, two students have tested positive and a group of mostly seniors were identified as coming into contact with them during the infectious period, which was February 17 to 19.
Principal Bruce Kearney said the transmission occurred at events over the weekend ‘‘outside of the school calendar’’ – one on Saturday night – and he was potentially expecting another case to be confirmed on Tuesday.
Amberley School has two positive cases, one confirmed on Monday and another on Tuesday. The two cases were linked, and originated from a student at Rangiora High, who is a sibling of the Amberley School case, principal Simon Green said.
The Amberley Fitness Centre, at 10 Anderson St, has been named a location of interest on Thursday, February 17, from 8.45pm to 9.30pm.
Anyone exposed there was advised to self-isolate for seven days, get a Covid test on day five, monitor symptoms for 10 days and get tested again if they felt unwell.
Community and developmental paediatrician Jin Russell, of Auckland, said measures schools were taking to prevent the spread of the virus were effective as long as families played their part.
In phase two of Omicron, schools were one of the few public places where contract tracing measures were effective, she said.
‘‘We’re putting a lot of burden on schools and principals are under the pump.
‘‘It is not unexpected at all that we would see large numbers increasing [in schools] as we head into the peak of the Omicron wave.’’
In the pandemic to date, the transmission of Covid-19 within schools was kept low when mitigating factors like ventilation, masks, and as much outdoor activity as possible were implemented.
‘‘Where mitigating factors within schools are not good, yes, you can see good transmission,’’ Russell said.
Canterbury Primary Principals’ Association president Sandy Hastings said schools had strong protocols in place to deal with cases, and were taking a ‘‘cautious’’ approach, sending any students with potential Covid symptoms home immediately.
‘‘We’re all taking it one day at a time, but the goal is to stay open . . . as much as possible,’’ she said.
Some systems in place at schools included dividing the school into bubbles to provide distancing between groups of students, creating adequate ventilation within school buildings, and enforcing mask wearing.
COMMENT: As Omicron sweeps across the country it was inevitable it would end up in our schools here in the Waimakariri.
The news this week that positive cases have been identified at both Rangiora and Kaiapoi High Schools, while not surprising, should still be a concern for the community, and it emphasises the need to remain vigilant and ensure our schools are sufficiently equipped to respond.
I have reached out to all the principals in the electorate to offer my assistance, and to thank them for all their work keeping our children safe during this difficult time.
It’s my view that we need to urgently ramp up support for our schools, providing them with sufficient rapid antigen tests to allow twice-weekly testing for students, teachers and staff.
If we can minimise the risk of the virus while keeping children in the classroom we will be able to minimise disruption to education and avoid unnecessary anxiety for both children and parents.
This will be a worrying time for many which is why we need to put measures in place to keep kids in schools and maintain routines wherever we can.
I have contacted CDHB CEO Peter Bramley to urgently request that there is increased access for testing available in Waimakariri .
As well as supporting schools by providing them with RATs and keeping our children safe with minimum disruption, I’m also conscious that the wider community also needs better access to testing.
Our GPs, already at capacity, will also be under extra pressure with the influx of patients presenting for a Covid test now that Omicron is in the district.
North Canterbury’s closest community testing station is currently in Christchurch, and judging by reports is under huge pressure with the number of potentially infected or symptomatic people waiting hours in line for a test.
I’ve been contacted by residents for whom this is becoming a real problem. Some are unable to drive, others live in rural Waimakariri, and for them getting into Christchurch is a significant barrier.
As well as more testing centres, we need faster result turnaround times. It’s not good enough to be told it may take several days to receive results – people need to work, and children need to be at school. Very few of us have the luxury of being able to take a week off just to find out we have returned a negative result.
I am concerned that the length of time between test and result will have an impact on the numbers getting tested as people simply cannot sit at home for a week at a time.
I will continue to push for accessible testing centres and timely turnaround of results across the Waimakariri, but I would urge anyone with symptoms to do the right thing and get a test wherever possible.
The principal of Kaiapoi High School says the pressure on schools to remain open will be immense without ready access to rapid antigen tests (RATs).
It follows confirmed Covid-19 cases at multiple North Canterbury schools as the extent of community spread becomes clearer.
Principals at Kaiapoi High School and Amberley Primary confirmed positive cases of Covid19 on Monday after six positive cases were confirmed at Rangiora High School at the weekend.
Kaiapoi High School principal Bruce Kearney said he was notified of one positive case on Sunday and expected more.
‘‘We’ve had a large number of students not attend today,’’ he said on Monday.
Kearney said he was more unhappy about the lack of ready access of rapid testing, which was likely to put pressure on his teaching stocks.
‘‘It doesn’t make sense,’’ he said. ‘‘A really easy solution would be the RATs ... we need them so badly. Or a smaller selfisolation time, but that RAT test would be even better.’’
Kearney said without ready access, schools would be likely to close.
‘‘The reality is do you want us to stay open, or not,’’ he said.
‘‘Because as cases grow, the pressure on people to stay at school is going to grow immensely.’’
The exclusion of schools from the critical worker testing scheme has been largely criticised by the education sector.
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) has said schools may be considered critical where they provided support for critical services by supervising the children of workers unable to have them at home.
‘‘The scheme is not intended to enable the attendance of all staff and students – schools have planned for delivering hybrid learning in a range of scenarios when teachers or students are having to isolate at home,’’ MBIE told RNZ last week.
‘‘This scheme is only for those people who can’t have their children at home.’’
Waimakariri MP Matt Doocey also called for rapid antigen testing to be made available for schools, similar to systems implemented across the Tasman.
Amberley School principal Simon Green confirmed a positive case of Covid-19 in the community – a family member of one of the cases at Rangiora High School.
Dozens of pupils had been kept at home on Monday, mostly as a precaution.
‘‘We’ve probably got a quarter of the school away today,’’ he said on Monday.
There had been extensive community support for the family who had positive cases and the school was ‘‘carrying on as normal’’.
‘‘We’re just trying to keep things as normal as possible,’’ he said.
‘‘I’m looking outside and it’s morning tea time ... there’s kids on rollerblades, kids on scooters, kids climbing trees, it’s not the end of the world.’’
Rangiora High School principal Karen Stewart said, on the school’s Facebook page, it had completed a thorough contact tracing process, which had identified several close contacts.
The school was operating as normal on Monday, but Stewart urged pupils to be vigilant.
‘‘Now more than ever, it is very important that all students wear a mask when indoors and on school buses, and maintain good hygiene practices throughout the day,’’ she said.
A community Facebook page for North Cantabrians was set up on Monday, so the public could remain updated on locations of interest and Covid symptoms.