Chicago Kindergarteners Sickened After Shedd Aquarium Field Trip

CHICAGO, IL — A group of Chicago kindergarteners visiting Shedd Aquarium became sick about 10 days before more than 100 students from a Tinley Park High School suffered the same flu-like symptoms after attending prom at the aquarium. City and Cook County health officials don't know if the two incidents are connected, and they haven't determined what type of illness the students contracted in each case.

Around 15 students from St. Clement School in Chicago became sick following a field trip to the aquarium April 17, according to WGN News. The sick students were part of a group of 52 kindergarteners visiting the Shedd, the report added.

This past weekend, at least 111 Andrew High School students became sick after the school's prom April 27 at the aquarium. Parents posting to a Tinley Park community Facebook page following the outbreak said doctors had diagnosed some of the sick students with norovirus. But a spokeswoman with the Cook County Department of Public Health said officials were still waiting for lab results to make that determination.

RELATED: Illness Outbreak Hits 90 Andrew High School Students Post-Prom

People contracting norovirus can suffer stomach-related symptoms that develop between 12 to 48 hours after exposure, according to the website for the Centers for Disease Control. Contaminated food and person-to-person contact can spread the virus, and most people begin getting better within one to three days, the agency said.

Anel Ruiz, the public affairs director for the Chicago Department of Public Health, said the Shedd's catering and restaurant facilities have been inspected, and "there are no outstanding violations."

"As an extra precaution, Shedd has also completed a thorough environmental cleaning, and the health departments continue to survey students or others reporting possible illness," she added.

A parent of a St. Clement student told WGN that the kindergartners on the field trip brought bag lunches and did not eat at aquarium.

RELATED: More Sick Andrew Students Following Prom: School

Health officials continue to gather more information in both cases. Investigators looking into the Andrew outbreak have been surveying the sick students to find what other activities they participated in before becoming ill.

Ruiz and other health officials also have used these cases to emphasize the importance of washing hands with soap and hot water as a precautionary step when it comes avoiding illnesses like the norovirus.

Go to the website for the Centers for Disease Control for more information about norovirus and what steps can be taken to prevent it.

Shedd Aquarium (Image via Google Earth)