High school students hold ‘coronavirus party,’ infections spike - report

Yeruham Mayor Tal Ohana called on parents "to be more vigilant."

SEPTEMBER 9, 2020 17:57

Friends drinking by a campfire on a beach (Illustrative) (photo credit: INGIMAGE) — Friends drinking by a campfire on a beach (Illustrative)

(photo credit: INGIMAGE)

High school students in Yeruham held a party to celebrate the start of the school year without social distancing or masks, leading to 28 infections and dozens in isolation, according to N12. Additionally, after the party, the school that the students attend was closed and the number of coronavirus infections in the Negev region spiked.

The party was in violation of Health Ministry guidelines and took place in two separate locations in the city with 11,000 residents, which has 62 coronavirus patients.

According to N12, Yeruham Mayor Tal Ohana tightened restrictions as a result of the party, including closing synagogues on Shabbat, canceling all informal afternoon activities and stopping all cultural events.

“At my request, the police summoned the owner of the place where the party took place for questioning yesterday, and he was warned not to hold an event of any kind,” Ohana wrote on Facebook. “In light of the fact that we have reached 20 patients from this stratum, I call on you, the parents, to be more vigilant! An entire locality is now entering into aggravations and restrictions as a result of this incident.”

On Tuesday night, coronavirus commissioner Prof. Ronni Gamzu convened the heads of Israel’s largest hospitals for a meeting about the growing rate of infection. According to a report by N12, Health Ministry director-general Prof. Chezy Levy said that if a countrywide lockdown is decided upon, it will last for at least a month.

On Wednesday, the Health Ministry reported that 3,506 people had been diagnosed with the virus the day before. There was a total of 470 patients in serious condition, 140 of whom were intubated.

The death toll also rose, reaching 1,048.

Maayan Hoffman contributed to this report.