At least 36 students test positive for virus after camps

LAKE ZURICH, Ill. (AP) - At least three dozen high school students in northern Illinois have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus after some attending summer sports camps showed symptoms of the disease.

Investigations and contact tracing of the infections are tied to the camps held last week at Lake Zurich High School and multiple prior social gatherings, according to Lake County health officials.

Health officials said health screenings were conducted at the start of the camps on July 6 and some students who showed symptoms were turned away. But other students experienced symptoms during the camps and were sent home. Health and school district officials met the next day and decided to close the camps.

All camp participants have been told to self-quarantine for 14 days from their last possible exposure to the virus.

'œOur lives are very interconnected and this virus spreads very easily from person to person,'ť said Dr. Sana Ahmed, a medical epidemiologist at the health department. 'œEven if you personally aren't at a high risk of severe illness, you need to consider that every person you interact with may have someone close to them who is vulnerable.'ť

The state health department contracted with a private company which conducted 355 COVID-19 tests Sunday at the school. Mobile testing also will be conducted this Sunday at the school. The county said test results will be available within four to seven days.

Lake Zurich is about 39 miles (62 kilometers) northwest of Chicago

More than 10,400 Lake County residents have been confirmed to have the virus and more than 400 have died due to complications from it, according to the health department.