Primary school shut after swine flu case confirmed

Published on Wednesday 3 June 2009 12:35

A PRIMARY school has been closed after a pupil was confirmed as having swine flu, it was announced today.

Toward primary school near Dunoon has 25 pupils and the latest confirmed case is of a primary six pupil, the Scottish Government said.

But it is not yet clear whether the latest case is included in or additional to the most recent Scottish tally of 65 confirmed cases.

The pupil is showing "mild" clinical symptoms and not giving cause for concern.

In an separate move, Appletree private nursery in Rothesay has been closed and all 40 children have been treated with antivirals.

Officials said this is not connected to the Toward closure.

Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon said: "It is not unexpected that we are continuing to see new cases of this virus.

"We are determined to continue to do all we can to slow the spread of the virus.

"I would like to reassure parents and the general public that the risk to public health still remains low.

"However we can all play a part in disrupting the spread of the virus by taking sensible precautions, including regular hand-washing and following good hygiene procedures."

The Toward closure came after it emerged yesterday that the bulk of Scotland's non travel-related cases are connected to a cluster in Dunoon.

Meanwhile two people are in intensive care with swine flu, both in Royal Alexandra Hospital, Paisley.

Both – a 45-year-old man from Paisley and a 38-year-old woman from Glasgow – are in a "critical but stable" condition.

The man is believed to be the first case in the UK to be admitted to intensive care without any underlying health problems.

As of last night, Scotland has 65 confirmed cases, of which 57 are non travel-related.

Also, as of last night, there is one probable case and 30 possible cases of swine flu in Scotland.

One of the confirmed cases yesterday is a pupil from Dunoon grammar school. A pupil from the town's Kirn primary school also tested positive yesterday.

Among the cases in Dunoon is a group of Rangers fans which travelled on a supporters' bus to see the club's league decider against Dundee United on May 24.