Ohio U orders two more dorms to quarantine after county directive
Graphic by Maggie Prosser.
Ohio University announced Tuesday afternoon the residents of Jefferson and Tiffin Halls will be moved into quarantine as large numbers of the residents in those dorms tested positive for coronavirus, according to a press release.
This comes after Ohio U moved residents of Boyd Hall into a quarantine dormitory late last week as positive cases spiked in that residence hall.
In Jefferson, 16 of the hall’s 69 residents tested positive for COVID-19, according to the press release. In Tiffin, 22 of the 78 residents tested positive.
All students who tested positive for COVID-19 living in both Jefferson and Tiffin were immediately relocated to isolation halls on campus, the press release said.
Other residents of the halls were considered close contacts based on their shared living space and activities, which met the definition of the state guidelines for close contacts.
“The increasing numbers of COVID cases we are seeing in our residence halls should serve as a wake-up call to our students,” Ohio U President Duane Nellis said in the press release. “Now more than ever, we need to follow necessary health practices to keep our community safe, protect our own families and friends, and ensure business continuity.”
Meals and other resources will be provided to students through the quarantine period, the press release states, and Ohio U is working with students and their instructors to allow for coursework to continue for those impacted.
On Friday, when Ohio U announced residents of Boyd Hall were to relocate to isolation and quarantine halls, 19 out of the 94 residents had tested positive.
Gillian Ice, the Ohio U special assistant for public health operations, wrote in an email to the university body Friday that 20% of the residents in Boyd Hall tested positive for COVID-19 resulting in the relocation of residents. Based on the numbers given by the university in Tuesday’s press release, 23% of residents in Jefferson tested positive and 28% of residents in Tiffin tested positive.
According to Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, there is currently high incidence of COVID-19 in Athens County, which means that in the last two weeks, more than 100 people per 100,000 in the county are testing positive.
Cases in the county have continued to rise on average since the start of fall semester in late August. As of Tuesday, Athens County was the No. 1 county in Ohio in terms of COVID-19 occurrence, the Ohio Department of Health reported.
Anyone who believes they were exposed to COVID-19 or is experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 should contact the Ohio University COVID Response Hotline at 877-OU-COV19 (877-682-6819).
