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A Mexicana airlines employee wears face mask as he prepares for the arrival of Mexicana flight #960 from Mexico City at the Sacramento International airport on Monday evening.
State Schools Chief Jack O'Connell is holding two news conferences today at separate ends of the state to discuss school districts response to the swine flu outbreak.
O'Connell will be advising districts to ensure their required school safety plans are in order, including their responses to pandemic flu, said Pam Slater, an information officer for the state Department of Education.
O'Connell also will go over precautionary measures and is urging parents and school officials to download a free "Keep Our Schools Healthy" guide, which is available in several languages, she said.
To download the toolkit, go to http://www.cde.ca.gov/148645.
O'Connell held a news conference this morning at the Department of Education's headquarters in downtown Sacramento and has another scheduled for 1:30 p.m. at the Ronald Reagan State Office Building in Los Angeles.
Sacramento County health officials confirmed late Monday that three Fair Oaks seventh-graders have tested positive for swine flu, bringing the total number of positive cases in California to 13.
No other counties in the Sacramento region have had positive cases of swine flu, but many are gearing up in the event that a positive case is discovered.
In Sutter County, an operations center has been established in the Public Health Department to coordinate information and resources with local, state and federal agencies.
Despite there being no known cases, it's important for the county to be prepared, said Dr. Michael Kinnison, the county's public health officer.
"Our staff has been training for five years to respond to an influenza pandemic," Kinnison stated in a news release. "Right now, we're crossing our fingers we won't have to deal with one while at the same time doing everything that is necessary to mitigate the impact if an outbreak does occur here."
The front page of the county's Web site also contains information about swine flu and will be updated regularly.
Other counties in the region also have posted notices on their Web sites and issued information to residents.
The flood of information coming from local agencies and school districts is helpful in providing peace of mind, said Slater, of the state Department of Education.
Slater, who has a daughter in the Sacramento City Unified School District, said she got an automated phone message from the district at home Monday regarding swine flu, which basically said the district is "on top of it."
"As a parent, yes, I was very pleased to hear that," she said. "This was very welcomed information."
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