Just 2 Positive Coronavirus Tests In Hotspot Area Schools: Mayor

NEW YORK CITY — Recently-reopened schools closed their doors Tuesday in nine coronavirus hotspots in Brooklyn and Queens to stop the virus' spread — and tests hint it hadn't yet stepped inside.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said just two people tested positive for coronavirus out of 1,351 coronavirus tests conducted for 35 schools in neighborhoods now under closures. The tests spanned

The tests are ongoing across roughly 100 schools in the nine cluster ZIP codes, designated "Tier 1" by the city. There are now 13 areas on a "Tier 2" watch list where the virus is on the rise.

"We chose to close schools out of an abundance of caution," he said. "Thankfully, in our school system, including in the affected ZIP codes — Tier 1, Tier 2 — we are not seeing any unusual problems, anything out of the ordinary in our schools, thank God."

The test results spanning Sept. 25 to Oct. 5 followed Gov. Andrew Cuomo's decision to close schools, but not businesses, in the nine hotspots.

Cuomo, in a Monday conference dripping with implicit and explicit criticism of de Blasio, claimed the city hadn't done enough testing in schools.

De Blasio responded that the school district has a "situation room" designed to act quickly on positive tests. He noted all schools will begin monthly random COVID-19 tests starting Friday.

Parents should fill out consent forms at mystudent.nyc giving permission to have their children tested, he said.

"This is such a good and smart thing to do," he said. "The school community is working very closely with the department of health and the Test and Trace team to make sure everyone is tested, tested quickly, safely, obviously for free. It's a great way to know what's going on in the school to keep everyone safe, you will get the results for your own child."