Flu less virulent than feared; Md. schools reopen

WASHINGTON - Six Maryland public schools closed over swine flu concerns reopened Wednesday, but one D.C. Catholic school will stay closed for the rest of the week.

The schools that reopened are Rockville High School, Montpelier Elementary, University Park Elementary, Folger McKinsey Elementary and Milford Mill Academy.

Rockville High students tell WTOP they used the time off to catch up on school projects and work they hadn't finished, such as essays. The school closed Friday, May 1. It's not clear whether the missed days will be made up at the end of the year.

Tom Smetanick, a mentor to first-year teachers, said he is happy to be back at Rockville High.

"Kids have track meets today. They have AP tests. They have the HSA. Back to business," he said Wednesday morning.

In the District, Our Lady of Victory School will remain closed for the remainder of the week. Students already had a scheduled day off Friday. The school will reopen May 11.

The decision to close the Catholic school came after a staff member was identified as a having a probable case of the H1N1 virus. The woman sought care over the weekend.

"The person had not traveled. There is no immediately clear reason. My understanding is the person's family is fine," Archdiocese of Washington spokeswoman Susan Gibbs tells WTOP.

Maryland state health officials continue to urge parents to keep sick children at home.

"I think it's fair to say that we're not done with the flu," Maryland Health Secretary John Colmers said at a news conference Tuesday afternoon. "What we know is this is a flu that is passing through the population and will continue to do so. What we are finding out is it is less virulent, at least at this point, than we had first feared."

Colmers defended the closing of the schools, saying state officials acted prudently based on the information they had at the time. Now, Colmers said he would "certainly" recommend that parents send their children back to school.

However, Deputy Health Secretary Frances says children with flu-like symptoms - a fever of 100 degrees or more and either a cough or sore throat - should stay home.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed four cases of swine flu in Maryland, state health officials say.

No new swine flu cases in Maryland were confirmed Tuesday, Colmers said. Colmers said there were 13 pending cases, including four new probable cases - two from Prince George's and two from Montgomery County.

The state is working to confirm the cases through its own testing.

The Prince George's cases involved two school-aged children while the Montgomery County cases involved and adult and a school-age child. Phillips said another 45 samples are being tested by the state. Dr. David Blythe, state epidemiologist, said the samples came from across the state.

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