Lincoln student dies, had flu symptoms

LINCOLN, R.I. (WPRI) - A Lincoln Middle School student who died at Hasbro Children's Hospital over the weekend was experiencing flu-like illness, health officials confirmed Monday afternoon.

Skyla J. Raposa-Alves, 12, a special needs student, died just days before her 13th birthday, her grandmother confirmed.

According to Health Dept. spokeswoman Annmarie Beardsworth, it is standard procedure for Hasbro to notify health officials anytime somone under 18-year-old dies.

"[Hasbro] reported it to us for two reasons. One, it was the death of a child under 18. also, it was reported to us because the patient had influenza-like illness," Beardsworth said.

She said health officials will test Alves for the H1N1 flu virus depending on the circumstances surrounding the death. An autopsy will be performed to determine the cause of death.

Health officials did confirm they are not looking into a recent E Coli outbreak at Lincoln Middle School as part of their investigation.

According to Lincoln School Superintendent Georgia Fortunato, school officials are working closely with the Rhode Island Department of Health. She said Dr. Robert Crausman is taking the lead in determining what happened to the student and that the Health Department would provide more information when it becomes available.

The news of the student's death comes as parents remain on edge about H1N1. Twelve-year-old Victoria Sousa from Bristol died last week and later tested positive for the virus. In addition, many school districts are dealing with outbreaks.

"You don't know. You don't know whether or not they'll be [okay]," said Paul Morris, a Lincoln parent who kept his kids home from school Monday. "It's just something that no parent should have to go through."

School-based vaccination clinics began across the state Monday afternoon. However, according to the Health Department's schedule, the clinic for Lincoln Middle School is not scheduled until December 14.

A grief team from Lincoln's Special Services Offices will be made available to students throughout the week to help them cope with the death of their classmate.

Fortunato also urged parents to monitor their children call the school psychologist Sara Stevens 721-3400 Ext. 1766 or social worker Loretta Jones at Ext. 1768 if they have questions or notice any unusual behavior.