UPDATE, March 11

Officials say the West Central parent diagnosed with COVID-19 has not been on school grounds recently.

West Central Superintenent Brad Berens released an update Wednesday morning, saying school staff met with county officials to discuss an action plan to respond to the issue.

Berens said a Hartford man with school-age children recently tested positive for COVID-19. He has not been on district property within the last week.

All district buildings are closed and all activities canceled Wednesday. This includes outside groups who may have reserved facility space.

The district has also begun a "deep clean" of all school buildings and vehicles. Berens said custodial staff are using an ionizer to sanitize surfaces. He also said they have been proactively cleaning for over a month in response to the rise in influenza cases..

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Original story:

Schools in the West Central School District in Hartford will be closed on Wednesday to undergo what Superintendent Brad Berens calls a "deep cleaning" following the discovery that a parent with students in the West Central district has been diagnosed with the COVID-19 Coronavirus.

In a late Tuesday night phone call with Dakota News Now , Berens says he wants people to know the facts of the situation and also wants people to confident in the knowledge that the district is working with the South Dakota Department of Health and will be taking things "one day at a time".

When asked if it's possible that West Central schools could be closed for more than one day, Berens said it depends on how long the "deep cleaning" takes and what the guidance is from the state.