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The Nugget Newspaper
Sisters, Oregon
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Sickness lays Sisters folks low
By Jim Cornelius

Many folks in Sisters have headed out for spring break this week -- but they're going down the road feeling bad.

A series of illnesses has swept through town, leaving a high proportion of Sisters residents coughing, stuffy and chilled. It's worse than a nasty cold; for some it's been downright debilitating.

Sisters Elementary School has been hit particularly hard, with up to 72 children absent out of a total population of 400.

According to nurse Nancy Dempsey, students have been hit by the major virus that has swept Sisters -- and by strep throat and a stomach bug as well.

Dempsey said that parents should be particularly alert to any sore throat that lasts for more than a couple of days as it might indicate strep. She said that this round of strep throat has not always been accompanied by the usual high fever.

With spring break keeping kids out of school and away from each other, the contagion may slow down. And the break brings other benefits as well.

"Thank goodness for spring break," Dempsey said. "They'll have two weeks to rest and recover."

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