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A private school in North West has closed after about 15 of its pupils tested positive for swine flu.
Pecanwood College, in the Hartbeespoort area, was scheduled to close for its half-term holiday on Friday but, after absenteeism rose dramatically, it decided to close its doors a week earlier.
The school is closed "indefinitely" and will not reopen until sick pupils have had time to recover.
School operations director Chris Lee said that between 10 and 15 pupils had swine flu and that other pupils had tonsillitis.
"There has been an above-normal number of flu cases," he said. "It is far above what we'd normally expect for a winter term."
One sick pupil had been hospitalised but it was not known what the illness was, he said.
All pupils, from pre-primary to Grade 11, were asked not to return until further notice.
"We felt the children should recover and that parents should keep their children at home."
A problem for the school, said Lee, was that "parents are under pressure to send their children to school" because they could not care for them while they are working.
He cautioned that closing the school was not meant to create hysteria about swine flu but was a precautionary measure. He warned parents to watch their children's health carefully.
The National Institute of Communicable Diseases' national influenza surveillance programme reported 514 cases of swine flu this year to June 23. The vast majority of swine flu cases have been reported in Gauteng.
Pecanwood College, in the Hartbeespoort area, was scheduled to close for its half-term holiday on Friday but, after absenteeism rose dramatically, it decided to close its doors a week earlier.
The school is closed "indefinitely" and will not reopen until sick pupils have had time to recover.
School operations director Chris Lee said that between 10 and 15 pupils had swine flu and that other pupils had tonsillitis.
"There has been an above-normal number of flu cases," he said. "It is far above what we'd normally expect for a winter term."
One sick pupil had been hospitalised but it was not known what the illness was, he said.
All pupils, from pre-primary to Grade 11, were asked not to return until further notice.
"We felt the children should recover and that parents should keep their children at home."
A problem for the school, said Lee, was that "parents are under pressure to send their children to school" because they could not care for them while they are working.
He cautioned that closing the school was not meant to create hysteria about swine flu but was a precautionary measure. He warned parents to watch their children's health carefully.
The National Institute of Communicable Diseases' national influenza surveillance programme reported 514 cases of swine flu this year to June 23. The vast majority of swine flu cases have been reported in Gauteng.
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