Prince George, B.C.- So far, School District 57 hasn’t seen anything that would indicate H1N1 flu has hit any of its students.

Superintendent Brian Pepper says they have a protocol in place with Northern Health “If our absentee rate hits 10%, we will be contacting Northern Health, but so far, our absenteeism is well below that”.

Pepper says students throughout the District were given a letter from Northern Health to take home to their parents. That letter, from Northern Health Officer Dr. William Osei, outlines the latest information on H1N1 flu, symptoms, how it is transmitted, methods to avoid transmission, and links for up to date information on Swine flu.

The absentee rate at Decker Lake Elementary in School District 91 was nearing 20% when public health nurses were asked to take swabs of students. Three swabs all turned out positive for H1N1, so Chief Medical Health Officer, Dr. David Bowering says it can be safely assumed that all the children who were demonstrating flu like symptoms and who stayed home from school were experiencing H1N1. That school remains closed, and will be closed until at least this weekend, when the matter will be revisited to see if the school can reopen May 11^th.