Students face 10-day quarantine

By ALAN PERROTT and NZPA

Dozens of students have gone into voluntary 10-day quarantine around New Zealand after arriving or returning from countries affected by the Sars virus.

The largest group are about 20 Asian students who arrived last weekend to begin classes at the Manukau Institute of Technology.

MIT's executive director of student affairs, Stuart Middleton, did not specify where the students were staying but said their health would be monitored until the 10-day incubation period had passed.

The illness caused problems at schools and institutions throughout the country yesterday as students returned from the Easter break.

Some secondary schools have enforced a compulsory stand-down for students returning from at-risk countries, despite advice from the Ministry of Health that they do not have the power to do so.

Secondary schools Auckland schools began acting before Easter, with many requesting information on holiday destinations before the term ended.

Avondale College principal Brent Lewis said most foreign students had remained in Auckland. Only one student had travelled to a hot spot and the family concerned had since quarantined themselves.

The school had ordered barrier gowns and masks for nursing staff.

Lynfield College principal Steve Bouaird said it compiled a list of all student holiday plans before the break and found only six families of concern.

Some had gone into quarantine, but the school had not imposed a compulsory stand-down and would check only if a student became ill.

Dawn Jones, principal of the ACG Senior College, said the school had requested written details of student holiday activities. While no concerns had yet arisen, it would be sensible to ask any student who might have been exposed to Sars to stand down.

Otumoetai College in Tauranga yesterday refused to enrol one Hong Kong student and asked others to sit out the incubation period elsewhere before heading to the Bay of Plenty.

Principal Dave Randell said he was legally obliged to provide a safe and secure environment and criticised advice from the Ministry of Education as "poor".

Mt Maunganui College also closed its doors to students from affected countries.

Three Chinese students at Cashmere High, Christchurch, were forced into a motel for 10 days after being shut out by their school and homestay parents. Principal Dave Turnball said they could not return without medical certificates.

Tertiary institutions Auckland and Victoria universities want all students and staff potentially exposed to Sars to stand down from all classwork and university-related events for 10 days.

Dr Wayne Clark, of Auckland University, said the university knew the request was not enforceable, but hoped students would act responsibly. He did not know how many students may be affected by the decision.

About 30 Victoria University students are sitting out the 10-day break. Health information is being distributed and a freephone 0800 Unihealth has been set up for student concerns.

Manukau Institute of Technology and the Auckland University of Technology have also imposed stand-downs and banned staff from visiting affected countries.

Language schools Edenz director Tim Cooper said new students from at-risk countries had been stood down and those already here had been asked to remain in Auckland.

He said students trying to enrol from overseas were being asked to remain where they were until the Sars situation improved.

The epidemic had cost the school hundreds of students, resulting in several redundancies.

Barbara Takase, chairwoman of the Association of Private Providers of English Language, said most of its 71 member schools had introduced quarantines.

The financial toll

* Time magazine estimates the global cost of the virus could reach $54 billion

* China and South Korea could lose $4 billion each, and Japan and Hong Kong $2 billion each in tourism revenue, retail sales and productivity.

* Toronto, the subject of a World Health Organisation travel warning, is losing $58 million a day.