Officials have detected Legionella in Kettering City Schools' Roush Stadium after the fieldhouse was closed last Tuesday when student-athletes reported being sick.
According to Dayton Daily News, a Kettering Fairmont High School custodian died of Legionnaires’ disease in 2019. The district is now working to see if all other building, which are set to be tested in July, can be evaluated sooner.
“We do know a number of student-athletes have been ill in the past few weeks,” spokeswoman Kari Basson said. “This is what we are able to share at this time.”
The fieldhouse was immediately shut down when Fairmont football coach Dave Miller told administrators of the illnesses, and it will remain closed until further notice.
“We want to make sure that all students, regardless of symptoms, are making a full recovery,” superintendent Mindy McCarty-Stewart said. “The health and well-being of our students and staff is a priority for our district.”
Kettering schools are now working with a certified environmental group to take all necessary action to ensure that the fieldhouse is safe to occupy.
“We chose Legionella PCR analysis to get a rapid result, but it only validates the presence of Legionella, not the species or CFU count,” McCarty-Stewart added. “The lab is currently culturing the sample and we should know both of those in 7-10 days.”
Symptoms include fever, chills, and cough, which may be dry or may produce mucus, McCarty-Stewart said. Some patients may also have muscle aches, headache, tiredness, loss of appetite, and occasionally diarrhea, she added.
