KUWAIT CITY, Oct 26: A student allegedly suffering from Hepatitis C died in a private school in Hawally a few weeks ago, reports Al-Qabas daily quoting sources from the Ministry of Health.

Following the reports some parents of students gathered in front of the school for fear the disease may have spread among other children and accused the school management for remaining discreet about the whole issue.

However, the school administration is said to have responded in an official statement warning parents to stop the spread of rumors threatening legal consequences and accountability.

The school said representatives from the Department of Preventive Medicine affiliated to the Ministry of Health visited the school and denied any outbreak of the epidemic.

The daily added, the Director of Department of Private Education Abdullah Al-Basri and some administration officials also visited the school yesterday morning to check on the situation and functioning of the school and found nothing extraordinary. Everything seemed normal.

However, some of the parents who gathered in front of the school yesterday morning expressed dissatisfaction with the school administration to deal with the current situation and the failure to take preventive measures required to protect their children

. They stressed at least six students of the school are said to have had a rise in temperature and were admitted to the Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital. Some of the parents who spoke to the school administration told the daily the answers given by the administration were not satisfactory.

The parents said when they spoke to one of the doctors from the Department of Preventive Medicine who visited the school, and asked him if they could send the children to school at his risk, his answer was not convincing.

They said the doctor took water samples from the school canteen to ensure its safety and told the parents the children can attend classes as usual and that he will conduct tests on the water and inform the school authorities. They say they resent such behavior.

The parents said they have filed a complaint with the management of school health in a suburb of Sadiq. They also say they have agreed unanimously not to send their children to school until the safety of the students is assured and the issuance of an official report from the Ministry of Health confirming the area is free from any viruses or infectious diseases.