More Than 100 Students Kept Out Of School

More than 100 Hobe Sound Elementary School students were kept out of school for the second day in a row Thursday, sickened by a mysterious stomach virus.

Second grader Joseph MacGillibray spent most of Wednesday night and Thursday vomiting.

"I only ate bananas," he told WPBF News 25's Terri Parker. "I didn't eat much yesterday."

"They were coming into school and then they were getting sick and then they were leaving to go home," parent Kathy Gagnon said.

The Martin County Health Department sent samples from the sick patients to state labs.

The results of the testing were negative for Noroviruses, said Martin County Health Department Director Mark Chittum.

"At this time the cause of the illness is unknown and may never be known," Chittum said.

The virus was so bad that the principal called parents Wednesday and told them if their children exhibited any symptoms to keep them home.

Parent Michelle Schrout said that worried her "because I have two little ones and I don't want to be sick, either. I'm a stay-at-home mom, so I have to be well to take care of them."

Many parents were worried enough to keep their children home from school even if they weren't sick.

The school recorded 124 absences Thursday out of 715 total students. As late as 2 p.m. Thursday, parents were still arriving to collect sick children.

Martin County School District spokeswoman Cathleen Brenann said janitors disinfected the school, "just trying to make sure that they've cleaned all the surfaces that the students come in contact with."