Omikron is apparently also spreading in the Munich district. There are now five suspected cases of the new Corona variant originally discovered in South Africa. This was confirmed by the district office on Tuesday. Among other things, the Lise-Meitner-Gymnasium (LMGU) in Unterhaching is affected. However, the result from the health department’s laboratory is not yet available. “It is still only a suspected case,” emphasized District Office spokeswoman Christine Spiegel on Tuesday.
According to the headmistress Michaela Trinder, a child tested positive for Corona last week. The school and district administration did not want to say which grade it was. We’re talking about a fifth grade. “After the parents had informed us about the positive PCR test, all classmates were tested daily with us,” says Trinder. There has apparently not been another positive test result in the class since then. However, at the end of the week the health department sounded the alarm because there was a suspicion that it could be the Omicron variant. “In the course of the contact investigation, there were indications of a possible contact with a person infected with the Omikron variant, who does not live in the district,” said Spiegel, the spokeswoman for the authorities, explaining the procedure.
The health department then quarantined the entire class and four teachers who had taught them. In the meantime, it is actually no longer customary, as at the beginning of the pandemic, to send entire groups into domestic isolation in the event of a corona case, but only the direct contact persons such as the people sitting next to them – unless it is a particularly contagious one Variant of the virus.
Now classmates and teachers have to wait and see how the result turns out. According to the District Office, it is not possible to say exactly when this will be determined. “Whole genome sequencing takes different lengths of time – from several days to a week,” says Spiegel. The class and affected teachers are currently in quarantine until the end of the week. If the suspicion of Omikron is not confirmed, everyone could return to school on Monday. However, if the Omikron suspicion is confirmed, the named contact persons would have to remain in quarantine for a full 14 days. “Premature free testing is then not possible – not even for those who have been vaccinated or recovered,” says the district office. For everyone, including those who have been vaccinated and those who have recovered, the quarantine can only be ended by submitting a negative PCR test. In addition, PCR tests are required on day five and day 13, according to the regulation. No further measures are planned at the school.
In spring 2020, the LMGU was the first school in the district where Corona was detected
In spring 2020, the LMGU was the first school in the district to have a corona case. At that time, a disinfection team was still there to clean the entire school building. In the meantime, there has long been an ingenious hygiene concept. “We are well equipped,” says headmistress Trinder, referring to the ventilation systems that have now been installed and the additional regular ventilation.
The district office currently does not want to say where the other four suspected Omikron cases occurred in the district. According to the spokeswoman for the authorities, Spiegel, that would make no sense, as these are not even confirmed cases. It is also not disclosed whether other schools or daycare centers will be affected by the new virus variant. The first two confirmed Omicron infections in the district were found in a couple in early December after returning from South Africa.