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Air purifiers arrive in schools to reduce COVID-19 spread

More than 700 additional air purifiers have been sent to South Australian public schools in a bid to limit the spread of COVID-19.

May 10, 2022, updated May 10, 2022
Photo: Bianca De Marchi / AAP

Photo: Bianca De Marchi / AAP

The state government announced last month that it would spend $500,000 purchasing 1000 extra air purifiers – on top of the 4000 acquired by the Marshall Government – to improve air quality in schools.

Education Minister Blair Boyer said this morning that so far, 750 of the 1000 additional units had been dispatched to schools that were found to have poor air ventilation in an audit commissioned by the Education Department last year.

He said the number of purifiers for each school varies, with Parafield Gardens High School receiving 23 units, while 70 other schools and pre-schools had only received one unit.

“The air purifiers are just one step we’re taking to help stop the spread of COVID-19 in schools but the anecdotal evidence is showing it’s working,” he said.

“I was at Athelstone Primary School yesterday and the principal spoke to me about the difference the air purifiers have made at her school in terms of stopping the spread.

“We are committed to rolling these out to the schools that need them as soon as possible and we’re happy that more than 700 of the 1000 have already been delivered.”

The government claims there has been a “smoother start to student learning” in Term 2, with 1642 students and 460 staff testing positive for COVID-19 at the end of week one, compared to 5620 students and 847 staff testing positive over seven days at the end of Term 1.

Topics: Coronavirus
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