Bothell, Issaquah students ordered home for possible measles exposure
May 20, 2019, 1:45 PM | Updated: 3:21 pm
(KIRO 7)
(KIRO 7)
Twenty students and 11 staff members at Issaquah High School, and another 19 at Bothell’s North Creek High School, have been ordered to stay home, after possibly being exposed to a staff member confirmed to have the measles.
Another case of measles identified in King County
The students and staff were all sent home because they either had never been immunized, or could not prove their immunization. As a result, they are being “excluded” from school until the 21-day incubation period for the measles virus concludes.
Issaquah High School’s 20 students will have to stay home until May 31. North Creek’s will be allowed to return to school in June.
Issaquah High School closed last Thursday after a confirmed case of measles was reported at the school. An infected staff member was at the school for a number of days in early May. Officials spent Thursday verifying the immunization status of its staff members.
The Issaquah school staff member is one of the six measles cases recently tracked down by the Washington State Department of Health. The check last Thursday was limited solely to staff members, and did not include students.
Clark County declares official end to measles outbreak
Local health officials theorize this most recent outbreak stemmed from a shared exposure to “an unidentified person,” on the morning of April 25, 2019 at Sea-Tac Airport.
In total, three of the identified cases of measles were found in King County, one — a high school student in Bothell — in Snohomish County, and two in Pierce County.
