'Do we really want to close schools?' U.S. authorities resist coronavirus closures

Bothell High School, closed Tuesday for cleaning and staff training along with all other schools in the Northshore School district, is pictured in Bothell, Washington, U.S. March 3, 2020. REUTERS/Lindsey Wasson


(Reuters) - Like many Seattle residents, Andrew Davidoff is demanding schools close to slow the country’s deadliest coronavirus outbreak, but as in other U.S. cities school officials are resisting that, saying closures could make things worse.

Davidoff, a Microsoft Corp employee, has been told to work from home to slow the spread of the virus. He thinks his daughter, and other children in Lake Washington School District (LWSD) should do the same after 11 people died in the state from COVID-19.