Update, Friday, Oct. 30, 1:30 p.m.: East Hampton School District officials informed parents on Friday of a second confirmed case of Covid-19 at the high school. The school's first case was reported on Thursday, and school was closed for in-person instruction on Friday. With the news of a second case, the school is to remain closed for in-person classes until Thursday, Nov. 5.
"We have submitted our investigation forms for both cases to the Suffolk County Department of Health and await a determination regarding the need for any students or staff to quarantine," the district's assistant superintendent, Adam Fine, wrote in an email to parents early Friday afternoon. A backlog at the Suffolk County Department of Health may slow the investigation into the two cases, he said, promising an update "as soon as we know more."
Students will follow their remote learning schedules, he said. Those attending Board of Cooperative Educational Services programs will also stay home from school.
The district has not yet said whether those who tested positive for Covid-19 were students or staff members.
Original, Thursday, Oct. 29, 8:15 p.m.: East Hampton High School has seen its first confirmed case of Covid-19 this school year, with administrators closing the school to in-person classes on Friday "out of an abundance of caution," according to messages sent by the district on Thursday night.
Students will do remote learning Friday while the Health Department investigates the case. "We will communicate further information" after the district learns more, Adam Fine, the assistant superintendent, said in the messages.
The Covid case is the East Hampton School District's fifth since the start of school in September. The four previous cases were diagnosed in students who attend the John M. Marshall Elementary School.