Last week, Salford got its first case of the coronavirus* and led to Lewis Street Primary School on Liverpool Road and two other related schools (Lark Hill and Christ Church) to close for a deep clean (see previous Salford Star article – click here).
One parent of children who go to the school, and believes she may have come down with the symptoms, has written to the Salford Star with some background that shames both a proportion of the parents and authorities, but hopefully does not give a glimmer of what's to come...
A couple of days after going to an event at the school on 4th March, the parent (who shall remain anonymous) came down with what she thought was a cold. However, three days later she left work with a high temperature and extreme tiredness. Four days later...
"If I tried to get up out of bed I felt dizzy and very light headed, very drained, plus I was still coughing. I phoned in work sick...I brushed it off as my symptoms didn't seem to match as I had a runny nose throughout. I kept myself going drinking full sugar drinks and eating sugar sweets."
On Wednesday evening - a week after the school event - she discovered that a parent at the school had contracted coronavirus...
"She had a high temperature and was struggling to breathe, as she suffers with asthma" the parent recalls "She was taken to hospital as it was thought that she had an infection - sepsis. Once there she had to wear a mask when she was already struggling to breathe, hadn't eaten in twenty hours, and was put in a really hot room for four hours with no drink.
"She had the coronavirus test and was informed she didn't have it and was discharged" she adds "On Wednesday evening she got a phone call stating that she had actually tested positive, and she was now to self isolate."
After learning of the case, this parent phoned 111..."I was informed that they would put me down for a test, but they apologised as there were thousands of people that were waiting to be tested, and it was explained that it would probably be around 72 hours before I'd get a phone call.
"To this date I've had no call and I'm self isolating" she writes "The positive test parent's family that have had close contact with her have also had no call. None of us have been tested, and with the new NHS information it sounds like there are many that won't be, therefore the actual figure for cases in the UK is very wrong."
While the testing for the virus seems not to be happening, the fallout from the Lewis Street case has 'surprised' this parent in the worst possible way...
"The school has been publicly slagged off by parents, when they've done the right thing by closing and doing a deep clean, and other parents seem intent on forming a witch hunt to trace the parent" she writes "The parent that has tested positive is petrified that a group of witchalantes with pitchforks are going to attack her at some point. This parent is ill with the virus and no one has even bothered to find out whether they need anything, or how she's doing.
"Not only that, but because the other parents don't know who it is, it's rumoured that they turned on a Chinese woman at school and gave her abuse" she adds "At this moment there are around three to four names banded about, one of which is mine.
"I understand that people are facing a period of uncertainty, and there are children that have low immune systems, but think about what you are doing logically" she writes "The positive test parent has caught it from someone. I may have it and haven't yet had a test, and I'm now not sure whether I'll even get one.
"If I have it, I've caught it from someone" she advises "None of us has left the country, we've just been going about our normal lives. Face the facts. The virus is doing the rounds and it is everywhere. Look after yourselves and your families, but don't turn on those that test positive - they need support not abuse, as these are the most serious cases that end up in hospital. "
* Salford's first case of coronavirus only showed up on official figures yesterday, five days after it was announced officially
The schools are set to re-open tomorrow 17th March, according to latest information
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