COVID-19: Another Montreal school suspends classes pending student test results

Montreal school suspends classes over COVID-19 A second Montreal school is suspending classes because one of its a student is being tested for COVID-19.

Montreal — Another Montreal school is suspending classes until at least Monday because a student is being tested for COVID-19.

The director-general of Academie Louis-Pasteur -- a private, French, elementary school in Montreal -- sent a message to parents on Tuesday evening warning that a student was being tested for the virus. CTV News has obtained the message.

The student had recently travelled abroad and was exhibiting "certain symptoms." Test results should take 48 hours to come back, the director-general, Mark Passaretti, said in his message.

If the test comes back positive, he wrote, school administrators will consult provincial health officials.

The move to keep the school closed on Thursday and Friday is preventative, Passaretti stressed. The risk of contracting COVID-19 in Quebec is low and standard hygienic measures, including hand-washing, can protect against its spread.

If someone who has recently travelled abroad exhibits symptoms that could be associated with the virus: fever, cough, shortness of breath, they should call 811.

Another Montreal school, Collège International Marie de France, had earlier this week suspended some classes pending the test results of one of its students.

Almost 600 people have tested negative for the virus in Quebec.

The total number of confirmed virus cases in Quebec grew to nine on Wednesday. Its international spread has prompted travel warnings, stock selloffs, sporting event cancellations and widespread concern.