SCHERERVILLE | The Lake Central School Corp. is fighting a lice infestation at Peifer Elementary School in Schererville.
Superintendent Larry Veracco said to date, 30 students and eight teachers and support staff at the elementary school have been sent home with lice. A note to parents was sent out Tuesday, and Veracco said another message will go out to parents.
Veracco said on Tuesday, there were 13 cases; on Wednesday, there were 29 cases; and by Thursday, there were 38. In addition, there are two cases of lice at Kolling Elementary School and two cases at Hal E. Clark Middle School. The cases of lice at those schools have not spread, Veracco said.
However, letters only went home to parents of students at Peifer Elementary.
Veracco said the district called the Lake County Board of Health for assistance. However, Veracco said the board did not send out anyone because the school has nurses on staff.
Veracco said all hard surfaces at the buildings have been cleaned with bleach wipes. He said the entire Peifer building also will be "fogged" with an aerosol spray. Veracco said school buses also were cleaned.
"It's a product with a 60-day residue," he said. "Any parent who wants to see the MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet) can view it. It will be available at the school for parents to see."
Veracco said it is not clear how the problem began and the school has not tried to identify the person who originally had it. "There's no way to prove who the source is," he said.
Veracco said earlier this week, a couple of students who had lice returned to school and were cleared. He said boys clear up more quickly than girls because they have less hair.
"We'll ask that parents continue to monitor their students," he said. "In the 20 years that I've been with the school corporation, historically, we've never had more than a case or two in any of our buildings."
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