Legionnaires’ Scare Shuts School

A case of potentially fatal Legionnaires’ disease has forced the closure of a Northern California elementary school for at least a week, officials said Friday.

Students and staff were evacuated from Olivet Elementary School in Santa Rosa, about 40 miles north of San Francisco, Thursday after a teacher was diagnosed with the disease.

Officials said the school will remain closed at least through next week as buildings and systems are checked for the bacteria that cause the disease.

Legionella bacteria, which can be carried in aerosol droplets, have also been found in air-conditioning cooling towers, showers, fountains, humidifiers and respiratory therapy equipment.

“We have not established that Olivet School is the source of the Legionnaires’ disease organism, but we are taking every precaution,” a school district spokesman said in a recorded statement.