JOHNSON CREEK — A school in Jefferson County is closing its doors Friday after nearly a third of students had to stay home on Thursday due to a stomach virus.
The Jefferson County Health Department says about 30% of the student population attending the Johnson Creek Elementary School, along with several staff, started becoming ill with gastrointestinal symptoms, mainly vomiting.
The Health Department, along with epidemiologists from the State Division of Public Health, are working with the school district to complete an investigation. The Elementary School will be closed Friday, December 6, 2019 for thorough cleaning.
It was initially reported that the symptoms were caused by influenza which is often confused with the "stomach flu." Although the exact cause of the illness isn't known, it resembles a gastrointestinal virus, not the influenza virus.
