Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey has issued a State Public Health Emergency as the flu continues to ravage the state, causing school closings and over-filled hospitals.

The outbreak has already caused one Birmingham-area school, Briarwood Christian School, to close due to a large number of students and teachers with the flu.

Emergency departments and outpatient clinics are also seeing very high volumes of patients. At this time, this is not a pandemic flu situation, but a major seasonal flu situation, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health.

The ADPH is encouraging Alabama residents to do these things to prevent the flu:

Get the flu vaccine, it is not too late

Stay at home if you have a fever

Wash your hands

Cover your cough and sneeze

Clean and disinfect

Learn home care

Refrain from visiting friends and family in the hospital

Crowded hospitals

Children's of Alabama issued its diversion protocol Thursday due to a bed shortage at the hospital, said hospital spokesman Jody Seal.

The hospital is requesting the Birmingham Regional Emergency Medical Services System to divert patients to another pediatric hospital due to the shortage of available beds.

"Additionally due to the shortage of available bed, Children's may transfer patients to other hospitals in order to provide the patients with the best available care," Seal said.

UAB Hospital is rescheduling some non-emergency elective surgeries originally scheduled for Thursday and Friday due to the hospital being over capacity due to flu patients, UAB spokesman Bob Shepard told AL.com.

"We are still performing surgery for trauma, urgent cases, inpatients, or day-of surgery where the patient goes home on the same day and there is not a need for a hospital bed after the procedure," Shepard said. "We do not typically schedule elective surgery on the weekends or holidays, so we will re-evaluate the situation at the beginning of next week."

School closings due to the flu

Briarwood Christian School will be closed Friday due to a large number of staff and students sick with the flu.

Home sports events scheduled for the weekend will be rescheduled.

School officials said the school will be closed until the end of the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday.

BCS is cancelling school tomorrow (fri) due to large numbers of students and staff with flu. All home sports activities will be rescheduled. We will stay closed thru end of MLK holiday. Prayers for quick recovery! — Briarwood Athletics (@BCS_Lions) January 11, 2018

Several campuses of Randolph School in Huntsville were also closed this week due to the flu outbreak.

The Jefferson County Department of Health discussed the flu situation in the Birmingham area at a press conference Wednesday night.