Parents Asked To Keep Students Home

Boston, Massachusetts - School officials at Bishop Feehan High School in Attleboro aren't sure what has caused it, but they say 20 percent of the school's 1,025-member student body is sick with a flu-like illness.

The situation has caused enough concern that the school has sent an e-mail to parents asking them to keep their children home if they appear to be ill.

The Catholic school south of Boston has seen 220 students come down with a variety of symptoms ranging from fever and chills to body aches, a harsh cough and a sinus type of headache, Principal Bill Runey said.

He said so many students have become ill that the school decided to postpone the Science Fair that was scheduled to take place Wednesday to avoid having too many of them confined to an enclosed space where the illness could spread more easily.

The flu's incubation period is two days. Local health officials said the virus may have been spread a Friday night basketball game.

"If they were at the game on Friday night, people may not have started showing symptoms until Sunday or Monday, which is why flu can spread so rapidly," said Jacquie O'Brien, Attleboro's public health nurse.

The school has also contracted with an outside janitorial service to try to clean and sanitize the building to prevent further spread of the illness.

Administrators also notified local health officials, who said the state health department has confirmed 16 cases of influenza at the school

The spread of the flu can be prevented by hand washing, good cough etiquette and getting a flu shot, health officials said.