23 Kentucky Schools Shut Down To Disinfect

October 28, 2007 8:01 a.m. EST

Pikeville, KY (AHN) - The eastern Kentucky school district will shut down all its 23 schools Monday to disinfect facilities.

The move, affecting more than 10 ,000 students, comes after one Pike County student in September was found infected with MRSA or Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Without antibiotic treatment, the bacterial strain can be deadly.

Pike County schools superintendent Roger Wagner said, "We're not closing schools because there's been a large number of breakouts, but as a preventive measure."

He said the school district will disinfect all area inside and outside schools including classrooms, restrooms, cafeterias, hallways, locker rooms, buses, playgrounds and sports fields.

MRSA has been blamed for the death of a Virginia high school senior and a 12-year-old New York City middle school student early in October. A government report estimates the bacteria may infect more than 90 thousand people annually.