An Update on Monday morning:

State health officials have confirmed today that a second child attending Spring Creek Elemenary School in Bonita Springs has the H1N1, also referred to as swine flu. The second victim is also a young male student. A third student may also have swine flu from the same school but tests had not come back to the health department as of this morning.

Lee County Health Director Dr. Judith Hartner told reporters at a press conference Friday afternoon that there was one confirmed case of a student at Spring Creek Elementary School in Bonita and as a result, the school will be closed all of next week.

She also said there was another male student who has displayed the same symptoms and the health department expected this weekend to get confirmation that the student also has swine flu.

On hand at the news conference were school officials and Ray Judah, chairman of the Lee County Commission.

School officials said workers have gone through the school at Bonita Springs to clean every inch of the school to remove anything that may transmit the flu.

One school official assured parents of children in the school that when they open the school, everything will be cleaned, including busses that carry students to the school.

Hartner looked somber when she made the announcement and answered most of the questions from reporters.

She said she didn’t know how the first student got the virus. She said two weeks ago was spring break, but the two students involved did not travel away from Lee County.

“The two students are recovering very nicely; they have not been very ill,” Hartner said.

She also said medicine has been sent to the health department.

She also said the children’s parents and families are not ill and if a person has no symptoms, they can not transmit the disease.

Hartner said the department is not checking in other schools where siblings may be attending. She said if the sibling is not ill, he or she can not transmit the disease.

School officials said they have been in contact with other counties. Dr. James Browder has been kept informed of the situation.

School officials announced that a student in Broward County has also been confirmed with swine flu.

School officials said students will not be held responsible for not being at school and their education will be taken care of.

Parents of children were asked not to send their children to day care centers while the school is closed of to “makeshift neighborhood” neighborhood day care gatherings.

School officials said it was the responsibility of the parents to keep their children away from others.

Hartner repeated good health habits, hand washing, covering your cough, keeping distance from people who appear to be sick.

“We all need to be doing that,” she said.

A special shipment of more than 3,600 “courses” of medication. One course is one dosage for one adult, she said.

Hartner said there had been no reports of such illnesses in other schools in Lee County.

She said hospitals in the county have reported more people coming in with

“flu-like illnesses.”

“A month ago those people who were sick with flu-like symptoms would have stayed home. But because of the swine flu, many more people are going to the emergency rooms of local hospitals,” Hartner said.

School officials said it was a challenge for parents to keep their kids away from other children and suggested that parents stay home instead of taking their children to other people’s homes.

“If that means you have to miss work, that means that is part of that responsibility you have to take,” school officials said.

“We all have to be responsible as a community and be a part of the solution of the situation,” school officials said.

Hartner said the symptoms of both students at Spring Creek were noticed last Friday. Hartner did not know if they were in the same class room.

Hartner said the Broward County school system announced the school there will be shut down for just three days.

Hartner said if the situation changed, the school in Lee County could be closed longer.

“None of us are immune from this illness. To date, it has been mild. We don’t know if it will continue to be mild. We do not have vaccines for this flu,” Hartner said.

An emergency shipment was expected – some 60 dosages- this weekend and more will be on the way as needed, she said.

Judah said the community needs to know that the county is in communication with school officials and the health department and the county will take whatever efforts that are necessary in Lee County.