287 students quarantined following wastewater testing

This is a breaking news story and will be updated as more information becomes available.

287 residents of four on-campus residence halls at Utah State University are being asked to quarantine after elevated levels of the COVID-19 virus were found in wastewater samples.

Affected residence halls include Rich, Jones, Morgan and Davis halls. The news came in a safety alert sent through the university’s alert system Sunday.

USU is working with the Utah Department of Health and Bear River Health Department to conduct testing for all 287 residents. According to the alert, residents should quarantine for three to four days while waiting for testing results.

The university says quarantined students will receive delivered dinners tonight and accommodations will be made for students as the beginning of fall semester begins on Monday.

USU has been testing wastewater of its on-campus residence halls since July 1.

“Analyzing wastewater to monitor an infectious disease was implemented previously to monitor the polio virus,” says Keith Roper, a biological engineering professor involved with the testing. “This is the first time, however, that wastewater monitoring has been performed using modern technologies at a broad scale during a pandemic.”

According to the university, this testing allows the school to find COVID-19 cases a few days earlier than traditional testing.

As of the writing of this article, USU reports 21 active COVID-19 cases.

In the alert, USU said the situation highlights the importance of prevention guidelines, like wearing a mask and social distancing.

—alek.nelson@aggiemail.usu.edu

@nelsonalek