Chelmsford Public Schools To Close For 2 Weeks

CHELMSFORD, MA — Chelmsford schools will be closed for two weeks beginning Friday, according to the superintendent's office.

The district announced it was closing school in conjunction with more than 20 other districts from Merrimack Valley beginning Monday, March 16 until at least until March 27 in an effort to mitigate the spread of the new coronavirus called COVID-19.

"As superintendents of schools await further guidance from state and federal public health officials, the Merrimack Valley Superintendents Association has collaborated to make a timely and unified decision about school closure that we believe is in the best interest of students, staff and the larger community," read a jointly released statement.

On March 10, the same day Boston cancelled the St. Patrick's Day parade, Gov. Charlie Baker declared a state of emergency. Then, on March 11, the World Health Organization declared it a pandemic. The pandemic declaration refers to the scope of the new coronavirus — but not its severity — and means it has become a "worldwide spread of a new disease."

On March 13 Boston Mayor Marty Walsh announced that the Boston Marathon would be postponed until Sept. 14, marking the first time the marathon has been postponed in its history.

As of March 13 there were 123 cases of coronavirus in Massachusetts.

The disease, which apparently originated in animals, is transferring from person to person, although the mechanism is not yet fully understood. Symptoms include fever, coughing and shortness of breath, and many patients develop pneumonia. There is as yet no vaccine against COVID-19 it and no antiviral treatment.

According to the CDC, the best way of preventing the disease is to avoid close contact with people who are sick, to avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands, to wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, and to use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60 percent alcohol if soap and water are not available.

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