Brookside Primary closes early for holiday break after 6 COVID cases reported on Tuesday

December 21, 2021 | By Lisa Scagliotti

Late Tuesday afternoon, families in the Harwood Unified Union School District got word that Brookside Primary School in Waterbury would close a day early for the holiday break due to not having enough staff to open on Wednesday after six new COVID-19 cases were identified. 

“Brookside will be closed tomorrow due to an inability to fully staff all departments,” the notice from administrator Kaiya Korb announced. 

That was the largest number of COVID-19 cases reported in one day in the district during the entire pandemic which started in March 2020 and is now affecting its third academic year. The report brings to 16 the number of cases at the pre-K-through-fourth-grade school in December alone. In addition, one new case was identified in fifth grade at Crossett Brook Middle School on Tuesday, the fifth for that school this month. 

In all, the district has seen 30 cases in December -- as many as were identified from late August through November. Harwood Union Middle/High School has had seven cases this month; five were reported for Crossett Brook; one each in Moretown and Warren elementary schools, and none in Waitsfield, according to school announcements.

The letter regarding the six Brookside cases did not specify which grades were affected by the new cases, nor did it contain details of how many students and adults were affected. School officials said they would notify all close contacts that include students who rode on the Monday Elementary Bus 6 in the afternoon. 

"Thank you for understanding that it will take some time to make these contacts," the notice said.

The Crossett Brook case affected the Monday afternoon middle/high school Bus 2, according to that case announcement.  

School officials have said they believe cases among students reflect the level of virus circulating in the community. Waterbury has had the most cases reported in all of the district's six towns both overall in the pandemic and in recent weeks with its total nearing 500. 

Wednesday is a school day in the rest of the district with the holiday break starting on Thursday. Classes are scheduled to resume on Monday, Jan. 3.