Two Durham museum campers test positive for the coronavirus

The Museum of Life and Science suspended its in-person summer camps in Durham after two children who attended one of its sessions last week tested positive for the coronavirus.

In a news release, the museum said the campers, who are siblings, attended one of its on-site summer camps last week. The campers were in a group with one other child. Two counselors and a volunteer worked that camp session, the museum said.

The Durham in-person camps have been canceled for the rest of the week to give staff time to be tested for COVID-19. The museum has not decided when it will restart camp sessions.

The siblings were asymptomatic when they attended camp and were tested because someone in their social circle had the virus. The museum first learned that the siblings had tested positive from their parents, Matt Pusateri, the museum spokesman, said in an interview Tuesday. The museum then learned of the positive test results from the Durham County Health Department.

The museum started summer camps on July 6, according to its website.

Employees and campers were screened and had their temperatures checked each day, Pusateri said. The campers were kept in separate groups, and campers were kept separate from museum visitors.

All the museum’s indoor exhibits are closed and campers did not use the main building. Each camp session had its own classroom across the street from the main building, and campers wore masks when indoors, Pusateri said.

Counselors were careful about maintaining distances of six feet, he said.

The museum said it is sending refunds to families signed up for camp sessions this week.

This story was originally published July 21, 2020 at 10:13 AM.