Dozens of students return from ski trip with covid

DOZENS of Bachillerato students who spent New Year in Andorra have returned to Valencia and started to test positive for Covid-19.

Some have reported that almost entire coachloads tested positive, including the driver.

The trip, organized by students of various private and Concertado (semi-private) schools in the city, including among others, Liceo Francés, Cumbres, Dominicos, Cambridge House, Gran Asociación, Loreto, Maristas and Esclavas, involved a few hundred seventeen-year-olds who went skiing in Pas de la Casa between 27 December and 1 January. The trip is a traditional event at this time of year and it should be noted that it is not organised by the schools themselves.

While in the popular Pyrenean resort, the youngsters enjoyed the aprés ski in bars and clubs, with little social distancing or use of face masks.

Some students chose not to go on the trip, due to the current high infection rates from covid and there are parents who have labelled the trip as “irresponsible”, while others welcomed their teenagers home with antigen tests as they crossed the threshold, before confining them to their bedrooms.

Given the incubation period, it is expected that more students will test positive in the coming days, and the main worry now will be for infections among family members at Kings Days celebrations, rather than concern for the return to school which is set for next Monday, 10 January.

The health department was informed about the large number of cases on Monday, but as reported in Valencia Plaza, hasn’t yet registered a macro-outbreak.

Figures continue to soar following Christmas and New Year celebrations

The health department yesterday, Monday, reported a further 22,832 new infections from coronavirus since Friday, 31 December, which is almost double the number registered the previous Friday, (11,822). The figure is also more than October and November put together, 22,547. There were also 9 deaths registered yesterday.

Today, Tuesday, a further 9,160 new infections were reported and the region’s hospitals currently have 1,109 people being treated for covid-19, with 184 of them needing intensive care.

There were also 35 more deaths reported; 16 women, aged between 55 and 96, and 19 men, aged between 45 and 95.