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Sag Harbor - Sag Harbor School District officials have confirmed two cases of the H1N1 virus, commonly known as the swine flu, at Pierson Middle-High School on Thursday, June 11.

Two high school students were identified as having the flu by their personal physician, Dr. Mark Kot, who promptly informed the school district. The Pierson physician, Dr. Gail Schoenfeld, informed the district of several students suffering from flu-like symptoms, though none of those have been confirmed as H1N1.

The school district will not be closing its doors as a result. "I called the Suffolk County Department of Health to ask their advice about the proper course of action to take," Sag Harbor Superintendent Dr. John Gratto explained in a letter to parents on June 11, having spoken with Dr. Humayan Chaudhry, commissioner of the Suffolk County Department of Health Services. Dr. Chaudhry recommended that all students "who have flu-like illness should stay home for seven days after symptoms have started or at least 24 hours after symptoms resolve, whichever is longer."

While the virus tends to spread quickly through populations, "the severity of H1N1 is less than originally thought and the advice is to treat it as any seasonal flu," Dr. Chaudhry advised.

"I also ask for your help by reminding your children to wash their hands often, use appropriate cough and sneeze etiquette and report any illness to the nurse immediately," Gratto requested of parents in his letter. "I sent it [the letter] out to merely inform parents of the situation," Gratto explained on June 12. "It's merely cautionary."