Las Vegas elementary school illness investigated

By Mary Manning

Published Tuesday, June 9, 2009 | 10:50 a.m.

Updated Tuesday, June 9, 2009 | 11:20 a.m.

Southern Nevada Health District officials are investigating an illness with flu-like symptoms at a Las Vegas elementary school.

Parents have been asked to keep their children at home if they have symptoms such as sneezing, coughing, vomiting or diarrhea after 105 students were either absent or sent home Monday at Marion Earl Elementary School.

The school, at 6605 W. Reno Ave., between West Hacienda and West Tropicana avenues and east of South Rainbow Boulevard, notified parents that officials were monitoring school attendance rates.

A school spokeswoman referred all calls to the Clark County School District Communications Office.

The school district said that 148 students are absent as of this morning. The school will remain open until health officials determine what is causing the illnesses, said Michael Rodriguez, Clark County School District spokesman.

Normally, Marion Earl, which is one of 90 year-round schools, has 92 percent of its students in attendance, Rodriguez said. "It's more like 75 percent or 80 percent," he said.

"It is noticeable," Rodriguez said. "It does catch our attention."

The school will remain open because school district and health district officials do not know what is causing the illness, Rodriguez said.

Health district investigators will take samples to try and find out what is causing the illness, said Stephanie Bethel, a spokeswoman for the Southern Nevada Health District.

"We are aware of an influenza-like illness," Bethel said.

It could be a form of influenza virus, or it could be the novel H1N1 virus, also known as swine flu, or it could be something else, Bethel said.

As of Friday the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that Nevada has 128 confirmed cases of the H1N1 flu. The United States total is 13,217 cases with 27 deaths. Nevada has not reported any deaths from the novel flu virus that was reported first in Mexico and has spread around the world.