AL-KHARJ: Fear gripped students and teachers of a primary school for girls in Al-Kharj after news spread about the father of two students succumbing to the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) recently.

“Soon after hearing about the death of the girls’ father, we contacted the health unit and school health department, as well as the administrative supervisor,” Nadia Al-Dleimi, assistant principal of the school, was quoted as saying by local media on Sunday.

She said the school has been living in a state of alert. “We tried to make sure that the girls whose father died of MERS attended school only if they were free of the virus.”

A school official said: “We called the girls’ mother and asked her to keep them home until a medical report is issued stating they don’t have the infection.

“Laboratory tests on samples collected from the girls showed they were free of the virus and they could return to school.”