Four pupils at a high school in Ceres have tested positive for COVID-19, resulting in a total of 60 students being quarantined at its hostel. This was done on the advisory of the Western Cape Department of Education (WCED).
The students went into quarantine before President Cyril Ramaphosa’s announcement that public schools are to take a four-week-long break and reopen in late August.
The school governing body (SGB) and parents decided that the quarantine should be allowed to continue despite the schools closure.
Speaking to News24, WCED spokesperson Bronagh Hammond said: “The Department of Health was notified, and it was advised to quarantine all the hostel learners and some staff.”
The grades affected by the contamination are Grades 10 and 12 and according to Hammond, the parents of these pupils expressed their approval and gratitude at the decision of the WCED to keep the affected students in the hostel.
“The Department of Health is monitoring the situation and further results are still outstanding,” said Hammond.
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