Thousands Of Teachers Test Positive For Covid As Schools Start

The results of the first round of teacher covid tests have shown that up to 2, 500 teachers have tested positive for the virus according to Enrique Ossorio, Madrid´s Education minister.

Some 60,000 tests have so far been administered by as part of the region´s measures for the new school year which started last Friday.

The total represents some 3.5 per cent of the total.

Those who have tested positive must now undergo a secondary PCR tests in order to be allowed into the classroom or be self isolated in homes under observation.

The Madrid regional head Isabel Diaz Ayuso had previously announced an additional 370 million Euros for the educational sector this academic year which included the hiring of over 10,000 temporary teachers to avoid disruptions to class schedules due to the ongoing coronavirus surge.

The Madrid regional authorities have  so far carried out 90% of the Covid-19 tests for Covid-19 on the autonomous community’s teaching staff.

The region’s teacher testing was initiall hit by poor coordination which led to chaotic scenes with long queues of up to 1.5 km long on the first day of testing due to the short notice given to teachers to arrive at the testing centres.

The education minister later apologed for the error saying “They had to wait many hours, and that is not right”.

Diaz Ayuso said that schools would be a “fortress” against the virus.

Nurseries reopened last Friday and primary pupils are due to start from tomorow.

To date Madrid has so far registered over 108,000 Covid-19 cases with 8,546 deaths out of a Spanish total of 517,133 cases and 29, 418 fatalities.

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