Three children were removed from a Richardson elementary school after health officials say they may have been in contact with Dallas Ebola patient Thomas Eric Duncan.
Dallas County Health and Human Services notified the Richardson Independent School District Thursday that three sibling students at Wallace Elementary needed to be evaluated for symptoms of Ebola and interviewed by authorities.
The students, who are all said to be healthy and are showing no symptoms of Ebola, were removed from school to be monitored.
Even more, some of the parents of kids on her son's soccer team have requested that he not play in this weekend's games because he goes to Wallace.
Officials have not said how the three children came into contact with Duncan.
"It is critical for parents to remember that Ebola cannot be transmitted by someone who is not exhibiting symptoms of the illness, including a high fever," Richardson ISD said in a news release Thursday. "The students at Wallace have attended school all week and have not demonstrated or complained of any symptoms. Coming in contact with a person who is ill with Ebola does not mean a person will contract the virus," it added.
Health authorities have indicated that no other Richardson schools, students, parents or staff members have been linked to the Ebola investigation at this time.
The district sent a letter home to the parents of Wallace Elementary School students. Read the letter here.
Piecing together the connection of these three siblings to the Ebola patient proved to be difficult for investigators, according to Tim Clark, Richardson ISD Director of Communications.
It was four days into the school week before a representative from Dallas County Health and Human Services contacted the district with very limited information.
"It was, I think, first names and years of birth," Clark said about what the school district was given to begin its search for the impacted children. "But that's enough, you know, there are 800-some students at Wallace. So it takes a little bit of time to try to figure out who they were."
Ania Odum has two children - son, Jeremiah, 4th Grade and daughter Ryann, in Kindergarten - who attend Wallace Elementary.
"Well I feel like I have a rational side and I have a fear side. And I'm trying to decide what's going to dictate my decision making," Odum told NBCDFW. "And I feel like I'm going with the rational side, which would be I'm still going to send my kids to school tomorrow and try to be smart about it."
Odum said many parents she knows are allowing the "fear side" to take over.
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Several parents have told Odum they will not allow their children to attend school on Friday.
Even more, some of the parents of kids on her son's soccer team have requested that he not play in this weekend's games because he goes to Wallace.
