Amelia girl dies of causes related to swine flu

An Amelia County child has died of causes related to swine flu. Meanwhile, a private elementary school in Henrico County continues to remain closed today because of the spreading illness.

The girl, who was not identified, had tested positive for the H1N1 virus, the state Department of Health said yesterday, and she had no known underlying high-risk medical conditions.

Amelia School Superintendent David M. Gangel said the child was in first grade. He said the school system called parents of the child’s classmates and sent letters home to all other families.

She was the 10th person in Virginia who has died from causes related to the H1N1 flu, state Health Department officials said.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says nearly 900 people in the United States have died as a result of the H1N1 virus. Young people are particularly susceptible to H1N1 influenza and also are its major transmitters.

With illness sweeping through the school, Our Lady of Lourdes School in Henrico will be closed again today.

On Monday, the school told parents in its newsletter that it was “experiencing an epidemic of flu-like illness,“ with about 80 students absent that day with flu symptoms.

A letter from Principal Lucy Reilley, posted on the Catholic elementary school’s main entrance door, alerted parents Wednesday that Our Lady of Lourdes was closing temporarily yesterday because about 130 students and several faculty members had been absent with flu or strep throat.

The Catholic Diocese of Richmond has given her permission to close the school until Monday, Reilley wrote.

During the days the students are out, the school’s cleaning service will disinfect the building, the letter said.

Reilley asked parents to make sure their children have been fever-free for at least 24 hours before bringing them back to school Monday.

The school at 8250 Woodman Road serves students from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade, and according to its Web site, it has an enrollment of about 400.

Those at high risk for complications from the swine-flu virus also include some people with underlying medical conditions, pregnant women, and adults older than 65.

Though vaccine continues to arrive in the state, “there are and will continue to be delays in vaccine availability,“ Dr. Karen Remley, the state health commissioner, said in a letter to health-care professionals released yesterday.

The supply this week is 55 percent less than original projections, and next week’s will be 47 percent below the projected amounts, Remley said. As of Wednesday, 319,400 doses have come to Virginia.

Chesterfield County schools have postponed all previously scheduled school vaccination clinics, spokesman Shawn Smith said.

Henrico schools yesterday also postponed school-based flu vaccine clinics until an adequate supply of the vaccine becomes available. Parents of high-risk students are being advised to contact the county health department or their personal physician.

Peter Bacqué and Luz Lazo are staff writers at the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Staff writer Karin Kapsidelis contributed to this report.