WEST, Texas (KXXV) — "Mom, there were only five kids in my class today," parent Shannon Bailey said.
Shannon Bailey said her kids and many of their friends are sick with the flu.
"One day, one of my daughters was the only girl in her class, and she only had four boys. Normally, you know there's 15 or 16 in their class, so there was a lot out," Bailey said.
Some school districts in our area see kids staying home due to the flu and other illnesses. West and Mount Calm ISD are among several local districts shut down for the rest of this week because more and more kids are sick.
West ISD took to social media to inform parents of the school's decision.
Superintendent David Truitt of West ISD said on Monday there were 141 out of 1,294 students who were out sick, and that number jumped to 218 on Wednesday, with the most significant jump in sick kids at West High School. He adds that the total number of staff and students out was too much to risk.
Mount Calm ISD sent out a similar message to parents. Both districts asked parents and kids to get some rest. A source close to West ISD told our 25 News crew it's a daily requirement to sanitize the school after students leave.
Ankit Patel, a pharmacist at West Drug Store, said he's mainly seeing people come in looking for relief from the flu.
"As soon as school started the first week of January, it started picking up the flu, and these last 10 days, it's been significantly high in our communities," Patel said.
But this isn't typical. According to the CDC, as of early December of 2024, close to 41% of children received a flu vaccine.
"This year it's low this year compared to last year, but it's not significantly low, but it's still low compared to 2023 and 2024," said Patel.
