WILLIAMSON — More than 15 percent of the 4,521 students now registered in the Mingo County school system was absent from classrooms Wednesday.

That was 29 students more than the 677 reported as absent on Tuesday, members of the Mingo County Board of Education learned at their regular meeting Tuesday night in their central office at Cinderella.

Mingo County School Superintendent Dwight D. Dials confirmed to the Williamson Daily News that 706 students were absent from school Wednesday for illness or other reasons that may be connected to the concerns over the 2009 H1N1(Swine) Flu spread across the nation. That figure represents about 15.6 percent of the county’s students.

School Attendance Director Drema Dempsey said the absenteeism in schools the past two days is was up from a 6 percent average in absences during 2008.

The county’s student total of 4,521 was reported by Personnel Coordinator Nell Hatfield as the first month enrollment of the current school term. That figure, she said, represented a drop of 123 students from the first month enrollment during the 2008-2009 term.

Dials stressed that the county school system “is working with the county health department and our school nurses to take all the precautions we can to avoid any outbreak of the swine flu in our school system.”

He said facial tissues, hand sanitizers and other aids are in each classroom of every county school, available to teachers, students and other personnel so as to help provide protection against spread of the virus.

“We want to keep our schools safe as possible but everybody, including parents, guardians, children and school personnel need to cooperate in the effort,” Dials said. “We need to keep monitoring the flu situation and make the best decisions in combatting illness from the virus.”

He said teachers are keeping a close check on any child who may cough excessively and are taking the temperatures of children who appear to have a fever.

“We are really endeavoring to be diligent in every way and encourage our children to tell their parents if they feel ill, so they can see a doctor and be kept home at least 24 hours while showing symptoms of the flu,” he said.

Dials said parents can be good examples for their children by practicing good health measures. He said rules of absenteeism are being relaxed a little so as to allow children to be kept at home up to five days if necessary. “We are trying to be as sensitive and accommodating as we can in this situation.”

Dials said efforts are being made to keep very sanitary conditions in county schools. “We are trying to calm people and let them know we are being very vigilant and doing all we can to protect them. But, we need help from home as well.”

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) identify 2009 H1N1 (referred to as “swine flu”) as a new influenza virus causing illness in people. This new virus was first detected in people in the United States last April and the virus is spreading from person-to-person worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) signaled that a pandemic of 2009 H1N1 flu was underway.

Williamson High School Principal Johnny Branch attended the board meeting and told the group that health professionals had been to the school twice to train the school staff on ways to combat health problems.

Dr. J.W. Endicott, board member, contributed some suggestions for coping with the swine flu threat and stressed that a sick child can be kept at home up to five days if necessary. He also offered other comments about the threat to public health.

CDC recommends ways to protect oneself from getting sick:

Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after use. Wash your hands often with soap and water, or use an alcohol-based hand rub.

Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth for germs spread that way. Try to avoid close contact with sick people.

If you are sick with flu-like illness, CDC recommends that you stay home for at least 24 hours after your fever is gone, except to get medical care or for other necessities. Keep away from others as much as possible to keep from making others sick.

Avoid crowds and other social distancing measures.

In children, emergency warning signs that need urgent medical attention include fast breathing or trouble breathing; bluish or gray skin color; not drinking enough fluids; severe or persistent vomiting; not waking up or not interacting; being so irritable that the child does not want to be held, and flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough.

In adults, warning signs are difficulty breathing, pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen, sudden dizziness, confusion, severe or persistent vomiting and flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough.