On Thursday, the Los Angeles County Health Department reported more than 100 cases of the norovirus have been diagnosed at the University of Southern California in the last few weeks. Symptoms of the virus include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fever and fatigue, the Daily Mail reports. And obviously, it's super contagious—this is the same illness that sickened over 140 students at Boston College after they ate infected Chipotle. Since the virus started going around, at least 103 cases have been reported at USC, starting with 40 cases in the first week, according to an employee at the student health center.
To help with the problem, the university has put extra effort into cleaning on campus. School officials have also given students guidelines to help prevent the virus from spreading and are training staff to better deal with the problem. One of the new precautions is to make students use hand sanitizer around certain areas of campus.
Many students experience the virus for 12-48 hours, then it's gone. Still, students are saying it's one of the worst experiences they've ever gone through. One health center worker told CBS Los Angeles "it started in a couple of the dormitories and spread like wildfire."
Students can no longer serve themselves in the dining hall, and are encouraged to wash their hands often and also wash all fruits and vegetables well before eating them. Health officials have also told students to disinfect phones and keyboards, some of the germiest things a student can be in contact with daily. The biggest precaution was telling students not to attend classes until all of their symptoms were gone for at least 24 hours. Another reminder that you should never go to class sick!
