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Suspected Swine Flu Outbreak Closes Mass. School for 2 Days

Chris Boardman

Story Created: Oct 23, 2009 at 11:50 AM EDT

Story Updated: Oct 23, 2009 at 11:50 AM EDT

GRAFTON, Mass. (AP) - Grafton High School will close for two days next week and cancel all sports and extracurricular activities because of a suspected swine flu outbreak.

The school department says students will be dismissed at 11 a.m. on Friday and classes not be held on Monday or Tuesday. Other schools in the town will remain open.

Absences have been increasing at the high school for the past five days. School Superintendent Joseph Connors said 236 students were absent with flu-like symptoms Thursday, about 36 percent of the student population. Fifteen faculty members also called in sick.

State health officials say they're working under the assumption that the H1N1 virus is responsible for the outbreak because there's no evidence that the seasonal flu has arrived in Massachusetts yet.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Saturday, Oct 24 at 1:14 PM Rob Carr wrote ...

What a bunch of morons. What else can we do, vaccines are on the way and schools with outbreaks are being shutdown. Your IQ is probably in the area of 5 so you don't really understand that steps have already been taken to slow this flu down.

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Friday, Oct 23 at 6:30 PM MICHELLE wrote ...

THIS FLU HAS GOTTEN OUT OF CONTROL BECAUSE KIDS ARE BEING CALLED OUT SICK AND NO ONE IS DOING ANYTHING ABOUT IT. PLEASE HELP US STOP THIS NASTY FLU VIRUS.

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Friday, Oct 23 at 6:29 PM cara eddy mass. wrote ...

THIS FLU HAS GOT TO STOP BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE GETTING THIWER LIFE PUT AT RISK AND NO ONE IS DOING ANYTHING ABOUT IT AND S GTTING EVERY WHERE IN THE UNITED STATES AND RHODE ISLAND AND THE SCHOOLS ARENT EVEN STAYING OPEN . SOMETHING HAQS GOT TO BE DONE HERE. HELP US STOP THIS SWINE FLU A SON A POSSIBLE BEFORE IT EFFECTS ANY ONE LSE IN THE UNITED STATES.

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Friday, Oct 23 at 6:25 PM cara wrote ...

this flu has got to stop because the kids are getting sick because of it and have their life a risk and the parents are trying so hard to protect thir kids from getting it . so lets stop this flu now before someone else gets it.

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