Health department investigating outbreak at a Virginia university
LYNCHBURG, Va. (WSET) — The Virginia Department of Health is investigating an outbreak of gastrointestinal illnesses that's sending some to the ER.
The symptoms are similar to norovirus: severe abdominal pain, dehydration, vomiting, and diarrhea.
VDH said the reports and information they have so far lead them to believe the outbreak is specifically at Liberty University in Lynchburg.
The cause of the outbreak is unknown, but VDH said they are trying to figure out the source.
Centra also confirmed that in the last 48 hours, they've seen between 25-35 patients in their emergency department for dehydration; no one's been admitted to the hospital.
The hospital system could not confirm if the patients were LU students, but the university did send out a campus alert letting students know about the illnesses.
Out of an abundance of caution, we’re asking our Liberty University community to please be aware that over the past few hours, the campus has experienced a growing number of students impacted by symptoms indicative of gastrointestinal issues, such as severe abdominal pain, dehydration, vomiting, diarrhea, and other symptoms.We ask all members of the Liberty University community to please take preventative measures such as handwashing, sanitizing, disinfecting frequently touched surfaces and objects, and avoiding close contact with those who have symptoms. Our priority is to keep you and all of our other members of our community as safe and healthy as possible.Liberty and the VDH also sent out a joint press release to say no problems have yet been found with the dining facilities at the university.
"At this time, the Virginia Department of Health has not identified any issues with Liberty University dining facilities and is not recommending the closure of any dining facilities," the statement said.
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