PITTSYLVANIA COUNTY, Va. – Pittsylvania County schools are taking measures to ensure all kids are safe in class amid the flu outbreak, after suffering the tragic loss of one of their own, 7-year-old Kevin Baynes Jr.
Mount Airy Elementary School is taking steps to make sure everyone knows the school is safe and reminding parents what they can do to help.
A letter was sent out to all parents, urging them to keep their kids home from school if they are sick, in order to prevent a tragedy like this from happening to anyone else.
"Anytime you lose a student you just really, I mean it's like losing a part of your family," said Pittsylvania County Schools Superintendent Mark Jones. "We have equipment that we put in each classroom, that we have to be sure staff and students are not there, but will disinfect the room and then when it dries when it's OK for individuals to come back in the room."
Jones says maintenance crews came in Sunday night and cleaned the school and all buses into Monday morning.
Mount Airy isn't the only school undergoing this process. Cleaning crews will also hit Hurt and Gretna elementary chools Tuesday.
Despite this process, Kevin's untimely and devastating death has many parents concerned. SOVAH Health's Dr. Nilay Patel says the schools are taking important steps to keep kids safe.
"They're good about having the kids wash their hands and everything which is very important, washing hands. The problem is though kids start out with those mild symptoms like the runny nose and the mild cough and usually they have already exposed some children to the surrounding classroom, classmates to the flu already so yes they should be concerned because it will spread very quickly unfortunately" Patel said.
Jones says this message will be emphasized now more than ever before.