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Murray High, Piute schools close due to coronavirus spread

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Multiple schools in Utah shifted to online-only classes on Monday due to rising numbers of coronavirus infections and related quarantines.

The Piute School District in central Utah announced on Sunday that it would close all three of its schools for two weeks because too few employees were available to teach in classrooms.

“With all of the quarantines, isolations, and absences due to sickness it has become very difficult for the schools to operate normally,” the district wrote in an online notice. “... Though we do not have a large number of cases, our schools have had a difficult time operating with such a large number of absences by faculty and staff. Over 60 Piute High School students were absent on Friday October 2nd for quarantines, isolations, and other illnesses. The high school has had difficulty finding enough substitutes to fill in for all the teachers and staff that have either been quarantined or requested leave for illness.”

Classes will remain online only until Oct. 21, district officials wrote.

Murray High School in Salt Lake County also closed for two weeks beginning Monday due to coronavirus spread.

“Unfortunately, despite our very best efforts, Murray High School has reached the COVID-19 15-case threshold and will pivot to digital home learning for the next two weeks,” district officials wrote in an online update.