Compulsory day off for students, teachers after trip

Anna Rooney, 15, from Hasting Girls College, Ryan Smyth, 15, and Damien Chin, 16, from Lindisfarne College return home. Photo / Greg Bowker

Forty-six students and six teachers from two Hastings schools will be absent today after travelling from Los Angeles to Auckland on a plane with passengers who had been in Mexico.

Students and teachers from Lindisfarne College and Hastings Girls High School arrived at Auckland International Airport at 5.30am yesterday and were met by health officials who screened all passengers for flu-like symptoms.

Four students - two from each school - who reported sore throats and colds, were given masks to wear and were swab-tested for influenza.

They were told to stay home until the public health service gave them further notice, and the other members of the inter-school music trip were also asked to stay home today and see a doctor if they showed any sign of flu or illness.

Lindisfarne College rector Grant Lander said some of the boys were from the school's boarding hostel so had been asked to stay in the school health centre. The school had written to families of students involved, and sent a message to all parents to inform them of the situation.

The students had spent a week in California, where there have been reported cases of swine flu, but the greatest concern came from their exposure to fellow passengers who had been in Mexico.

"Kids at school are a bit nervous about something like this but I think they understand that the risk is probably slim and that we are just taking precautionary measures," he said.

Mr Lander said the school was "very conscious of contagious illnesses" and had advised students of the importance of using hand sanitisers and covering coughs and sneezes.

Ryan Smyth, 15, from Lindisfarne College was surprised to be met by a doctor when he stepped off the plane, and even more so when he was placed in isolation because he had a cold.

"It's pretty scary I guess," he said.

The students were unaware of the outbreak until the captain of their flight asked passengers to fill out their details for health authorities.

Ryan and three other students were tested when they came through security and were told to stay away from school until Monday while they await those results.