PORTSMOUTH — The school district on Tuesday received confirmation of two additional positive cases of COVID-19 at Portsmouth High School, Superintendent Thomas Kenworthy informed parents in an e-mail.

That brings the total number of positive cases at PHS to five, according to the district’s COVID dashboard. Of those, four individuals has positive confirmed cases and are currently isolating. Another has since recovered and has been cleared for return by the R.I. Department of Health (RIDOH).

According to Mr. Kenworthy, both of the new cases “are connected to previous cases and the students had been isolating and monitoring for symptoms.”

All information for the contact tracing investigations has been provided to RIDOH. “In the meantime, the school has been in contact with students and staff we are advising to stay home until RIDOH can complete those investigations,” the superintendent said. “At this time there is no further action required of anyone at PHS or the larger (district) community. If any further action is warranted a RIDOH and/or (district) official will be in contact.”

There have also been four positive COVID-19 tests confirmed at Melville Elementary School. Of those, one individual is still isolating and three have recovered and cleared for return by RIDOH.

Please support your local news coverage

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought the local economy - and many of the advertisers who support our work - to a near standstill. During this unprecedented challenge, we continue to make our coronavirus coverage free to everyone at eastbayri.com - we believe it is our mission is to deliver vital information to our communities. If you believe local news is essential, especially during this crisis, please consider a tax-deductible donation. 

Donate Here

Thank you for your support!

Matt Hayes, Portsmouth Times Publisher