Two schools in Nakhon Ratchasima have suspended on-site lessons and switched back to online learning after several students and a teacher were found to be infected with Covid-19.
Sukhanaree School in Muang district has notified parents that they would switch from on-site classes to online learning from Nov 11-24 after three students from Prathom Suksa 1-3 (grades 1-3) were found to have contracted the virus.
Public health officials were sent to the school yesterday to conduct Covid-tests using antigen test kits among those others considered at-risk -- 20 teachers and 66 students.
Another 200 students considered low risk have been told to self-quarantine at home.
A disease investigation team said two of the three infected students are siblings while the Grade 1 student is their relative. They live in the same community in tambon Ban Mai of Muang district.
There were reports that some residents in tambon Ban Mai have also been infected with Covid-19. The disease investigation team said it would conduct mass testing in the community.
Chong Maew Pittaya School in Prathai district has also closed for 14 days beginning on Wednesday after a student and a teacher both tested positive. Some 80 at-risk students at the school were told to self-quarantine.
Health officials from Prathai Hospital and local administrators were sent to the school to test at-risk groups and carry out contact tracing.
Meanwhile, the National Health Security Office (NHSO) will allocate 300,000 sets of ATKs to over 1,000 schools in Bangkok.
Dr Jadet Thammathat-Aree, the NHSO's secretary-general, said the test kits will be supplied to 1,037 schools including 437 schools under the supervision of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration.
A total of 169 schoolteachers and staff yesterday joined the NHSO's demonstration of how to use the ATKs.
Dr Jadet said rapid testing is another tool to help curb the spread of the virus in schools as young students are not yet eligible for vaccination.