ATTLEBORO, Mass. — A Massachusetts teenager who tested positive for the coronavirus attended the first day of in-person classes this week, leading to 28 other students being quarantined, the city’s mayor said.

What You Need To Know

  • A student at Attelboro High School attended classes three days after testing positive for COVID-19

  • 28 other students who came into close contact with the teen are now quarantining

  • The city's mayor crticitized the student's parents, calling it a "reckless action"

The student tested positive Sept. 11 but was in school Monday, just three days later, Attleboro Mayor Paul Heroux told CNN. 

Parents of other Attleboro High School students who were impacted are “really angry” and considering legal action against the parents of the infected boy, Heroux said. 

“It was a reckless action to send a child — a teenager — to school who was COVID positive,” Heroux told WHDH-TV. “It was really poor judgment. If you know that your child has coronavirus, is COVID positive, you should not send your child to school under any circumstances.”

In all, six students from the school tested positive before classes began, but the other five stayed home, Heroux said. 

Principal Bill Runey told NBC News the school only learned about the teen’s positive test after hearing rumors. The city’s health department was asked to look into it and confirmed the boy had indeed tested positive. 

In a letter to parents, the school district’s superintendent, David Sawyer, said the school’s nurses used contact tracing to identify and notify those who had been in close contact with the student. 

The parents of the infected teen told the city health department they thought he could go to school after quarantining for several days, Heroux said.

“This unacceptable outcome was caused by delays in the reporting timeline, not a breakdown in our safety protocols,” Sawyer said.