LINCOLN (AP) -- One Lincoln high school has been hit hard by illness, and local health officials suspect the H1N1 flu is to blame.
Officials at Pius X High School say 180 students called in sick or were sent home on Tuesday. That's nearly 17 percent of the school's 1,065 students.
Tim Timmons with the Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department says his office is assuming the illness is H1N1, also known as the swine flu.
Timmons says the department has reports of kids testing positive for influenza A. He says that because there are no other influenza viruses circulating in the community, it's likely H1N1.
Officials have reported three swine-flu deaths. The H1N1 flu is present statewide, but outbreaks have been reported in Omaha, Crete, Chadron and Loup City.
Copyright ©2012 Omaha World-Herald®. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, displayed or redistributed for any purpose without permission from the Omaha World-Herald.
