OTIS — Farmington River Elementary School will remain closed at least through Wednesday after a COVID-19 outbreak in the school community.
Farmington River Elementary School in Otis will be closed Thursday due to a COVID-19 outbreak, but school officials intend to reopen on Friday.
In an email to The Eagle, Superintendent/Principal Tom Nadolny wrote that the bus company that the district contracts with is currently unable to provide service “due to either a positive case or some awaiting testing. The fact that we cannot transport students is the reason for the closure.”
The school was also closed last Friday due to confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the Farmington River Regional School District. Nadolny said there have been three confirmed cases in the district.
A person who attended an annual social event and fundraiser at the Otis Fire Department last weekend, along with two of their work colleagues in Otis, have tested positive for COVID-19.
Farmington River Elementary School serves students in grades pre-K through sixth. After completing sixth grade, students are bused or transported to schools outside the district to finish their education.
“As a result of the district closing, transportation to and from Great Barrington and Lee will not be provided,” Nadolny wrote in an email to families on Sunday. “If other schools are open, but Farmington District is closed, you would need to provide transportation for your children to attend school.”
Nadolny said he would provide further updates to families on Wednesday.
COVID cases already were on the rise in Otis before school started this week. Three people tested positive for COVID-19 after Saturday’s steak roast fundraiser hosted by the Otis Fire Department.