Mystic facility attended by R.I. child thought to have COVID-19 reopens
The Mystic child care and preschool facility attended by a Rhode Island child who officials said had tested positive for COVID-19 reopened Thursday.
Christine Eckersley, the owner of Precious Memories Place, confirmed Thursday afternoon that the facility had reopened earlier in the day.
In an email sent Wednesday night, she informed families that the facility had received new information that day that "enables us to move forward with business as usual."
She said she could not elaborate on that Thursday. A Rhode Island Department of Health spokesman also would not comment on the matter.
"To protect patient privacy, we are not making public announcements about individual cases," Joseph Wendelken, the department's public information officer, wrote in an email Thursday evening. "We are communicating directly with patients, their families, and the people with whom they have had direct, face-to-face contact. The data we are releasing is aggregate data for the state. To date, we have had 44 cases, and approximately 2,500 people are in self-quarantine."
"Thank you for your patience as the situation unfolded this past week," Eckersley wrote in her Wednesday email to families. "We are grateful and look forward to reconnecting with our children and families. The center will resume full operations (at) 7:00 a.m. tomorrow morning ..."
Eckersley referred questions to Ledge Light Health District, the agency whose director of health, Stephen Mansfield, said last Friday the agency was "investigating a laboratory confirmed case of COVID-19 in a daycare establishment in Stonington."
Mansfield said Thursday the facility was inspected Sunday and authorized to reopen the following day. He could not confirm anything about the status of the child tested for the coronavirus disease.
"The case associated with this daycare is a resident of Rhode Island, we are not privy to patient information," he wrote in an email. "I can confirm that the daycare has met the requirements of LLHD for normal operation."
Eckersley, in an email she sent to families Saturday, said Precious Memories Place had been granted permission to reopen Monday, "excluding all children and staff who had direct contact with the confirmed case." She said she planned to resume partial operation of the preschool.
"To clarify, the one confirmed case last attended on Monday, March 9, 2020 and was only in direct contact with seven children and four staff members who were personally notified by the Department of Public Health to quarantine," Eckersley wrote.
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