COVID-19 Surge Shutters New York City Public Schools .
Due to a rise in COVID-19 cases, the entire public school system in New York City will close down on Thursday.
Mayor Bill de Blasio confirmed the news on Twitter, saying the city needed to “fight back the second wave of COVID-19.”.
Roughly 300,000 children who have been attending in-person classes will now switch to all-remote instruction.
The closure is due to the city reaching its three percent “threshold of test positivity citywide.”.
Over the past seven days, there has been a daily average of 1,672 new COVID-19 cases.
According to de Blasio, although the closure is temporary, in-person teaching will not just immediately resume when the positivity rate falls below three percent again.
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He plans to wait for community spread to stabilize first rather than create a disruptive back-and-forth for children and teachers.
Although in-person teaching has been halted, indoor dining and gyms will remain open at reduced capacity.
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According to the ‘NYT,’ parents are infuriated by the state’s priorities, especially since this latest spike does not appear to have been caused by the reopened schools.
