A petition launched by students at Nottingham Trent University (NTU) urges the university to immediately start planning for online teaching and take actions to protect students’ health and safety as the first confirmed case of COVID-19 reported in Nottingham.
The petition states “we are a group of students who wish to devote our effort to limit the outbreak of COVID-19 in the UK.
“A lot of students are scared and intimidated to take public transportation to school and work due to the rise of confirmed cases of coronavirus.
“We are in great concern of the worsening situation of the epidemic in the UK.”
The person tested positive for coronavirus had recently travelled to South Korea.
A statement issued by Nottingham City Council on Friday (March 6) confirmed that a Nottingham resident had contracted the virus, making it the first confirmed case in the county.
A spokesman for the council said, “We can confirm a Nottingham resident has tested positive for COVID-19.
“We are working closely with the NHS and Public Health England on this.”
It also advises people wash hands with soap and water and call NHS 111 if there is any concern.
Earlier in a statement, the university’s spokesperson said, “The safety and welfare of our students and colleagues is always our first priority.
“NTU is monitoring the situation with regards to the virus very closely.”
Hand sanitisers are placed across campuses as part of efforts to prevent infection.
Yet students say in the petition that the high density of population in classes would put students in huge health risks.
The petition reached 50 signatures within one hour after being published.
A separate parliament petition created on 6 March for closing down schools/colleges for an appropriate amount of time amidst coronavirus passed the 100,000 threshold to more than 110,000 within 24 hours.
This means the matter will be considered by parliament for a debate.
While Nottingham North has only received 65 signatures, Nottingham East has received 532 and nearly 1,500 signed in Nottingham South.
At least 209 people in the UK were confirmed as positive for the virus as of Sunday with more than 20,000 having been tested.
There are two fatalities of coronavirus in the UK by the time of publication, including a woman in her 70s confirmed dead on Thursday (March 5) and a man, 88, believed to have died at a hospital in Milton Keynes on Friday night.
By Qing Na
It is very risky to keep university and crowding in lectures and seminars as per WHO .
Hope message reach administration in University .
Thanks God no cases in NTU but if they waited till there are cases …it will be too late to control.
Just a concern of a parent and physician also.