Swine Flu in Stow

The last thing you're going to get from me is panic over a virus that seems to be about as virulent as any other, but since the rest of the world is panicking I thought I'd add a little investigative research to close a loose end from today's newspapers. There is now a case in Stow.

The Sentinel and Enterprise reported today that a student from the Nashoba Regional School District has a case of the flu:

Officials from the Nashoba Regional School District announced Tuesday that medical officials have confirmed one case of swine flu in the district....

The district includes the towns of Lancaster, Bolton and Stow.

Lancaster Board of Health Chairman Robert Baylis said privacy laws prohibit school officials from revealing which of the district's schools the afflicted student attends.

The state Department of Public Health reports that yesterday there was only one case reported yesterday in Worcester County, a seven-year old from Harvard (which caused Harvard to close school). Seven cases were confirmed yesterday in Middlesex County.

Since Lancaster and Bolton are both in Worcester County, the student in the Nashoba District with Swine Flu must be from Stow, the only town in the district from Middlesex County.

Tags: Swine Flu Massachusetts Bolton Stow Lancaster Nashoba

Sentinel blows it (again) on Nashoba turf

Two articles this morning characterize the effort to appropriate money for a synthetic turf field at Nashoba High School in directly opposite terms. Can you guess which one is wrong? First from the Sentinel and Enterprise:

LANCASTER -- After barely managing to squeeze its item onto the Town Meeting Warrant, Nashoba Regional Schools got their wish last night. Residents at the Annual Town Meeting voted to approve a $1.28 million bond authorization to install a new track and artificial surfaces on the schools' six playing fields.

And from the Clinton Item:

Lancaster voters may have said yes to the Nashoba field project by saying no to an article to disapprove a bond notice, but it was all moot when Bolton voters, at a simultaneous town meeting, voted to disapprove the borrowing.

Voters in all three members towns – Lancaster, Bolton and Stow – needed to not disapprove the bond in order for the schools to go ahead with the borrowing.

If you guessed that the Sentinel got the story wrong (which would be your default guess even if you hadn't read the articles, since they seem to get everything wrong), give yourself a cookie and a hearty 'Huzzah!'

Despite the Item's mind-bending attempt at a lede ("needed to not disapprove"? a double negative?!), they at least have a fundamental understanding that Nashoba is a regional school district, which means that all three towns needed to approve the project in order for "Nashoba Regional Schools [to get] their wish last night".

The Sentinel is apparently unclear on the concept. (Shocking, I know.)

Tags: Massachusetts Lancaster Nashoba Sentinel and Enterprise