B.C. health officials are shutting down an elementary school in Vernon for the next week because of a young student who has tested positive for the H1N1 or so-called "swine flu."
The student from the 800-student Beairsto Elementary School is said to be suffering only a mild case of the flu and is at home recovering.
This is the first such school closure in Canada and officials insist it is only precautionary.
"British Columbia has a strong surveillance system in place through its local health authorities and we will know if there are any clusters or outbreaks within the school system," Provincial health officer Perry Kendall said.
"At this point, there are no reasons for parents or schools in other parts of B.C. to be concerned about children's health while at school."
Parents are being urged to keep kids home from school if they're feeling sick.
British Columbia's number of H1N1 cases rose to 11 Thursday after five new cases were confirmed by the B.C. Centre for Disease Control.
Three of the cases were confirmed last night and the two today. Two involve young children while the other nine are adults aged 20 to 45-years-old.
The Interior Health authority has confirmed they are dealing with a case -- the first in B.C.'s Interior.
A spokesperson from Interior Health said the patient acquired the virus while travelling in Mexico.
All but one of the current cases in the province are linked to people who have recently been traveling in Mexico. The last case involves someone having contact with someone who was recently there.
The CDC told reporters it is expecting more cases in British Columbia.
Thirty-two cases of H1N1 are now confirmed across Canada. Thirteen new cases, all mild, were reported in four provinces Thursday.
Dr. David Butler Jones, Canada's chief public health officer, says the virus will no longer be referred to as swine flu, but instead will be called the H1N1 flu virus.
Earlier today, Prime Minister Stephen Harper moved to reassure Canadians that officials around the world are working together to minimize the virus' spread.
He also reminded people to comply with health orders because the illness is a serious issue.
Symptoms of the H1N1 include fever, exhaustion, coughing, muscle and joint pain and sore throat.
The World Health Organization raised its pandemic alert level to Phase 5 from Phase 4 Wednesday afternoon, saying the probability of a pandemic is "high to certain."
