www.thestar.com.au TUESDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2018 - $1.50
To market, to market MEENIYAN turned on some spectacular spring sunshine for its first ever farmers market last Sunday that attracted a good crowd of people, many from the local area and others from as Daylesford, Melbourne and Warragul. Organisers praised the wonderful stallholders who turned on a fabulous array with a great selection of healthy food and fresh local produce. If you missed out on this great little market you can catch it again on Sunday, November 11. See page 6.
CHICKEN POX OUTBREAK Cases confirmed in Leongatha and Wonthaggi
By Leticia Laing
THE painful and highly contagious viral disease, chicken pox (varicella) is spreading across the community in one of the largest outbreaks seen by doctors in years.
Leongatha Healthcare GP Chris Webster said in the past three weeks, more than 40 confirmed cases had presented to the clinic - mostly in children. He said if an adult had chicken pox as a child, the virus lay dormant in the body and could be reawakened as shingles, which can be a very painful condition. “We haven’t seen much for several years so it must be a strain that is more resistant to the protec-
tion the vaccine confers,” Dr Webster said. “Vaccines are never 100 percent effective but from what I have seen, the severity and the transmission of the disease has been tempered by vaccinations.” Both St Laurence O’Toole and Leongatha primary schools reported confirmed cases of students with chicken pox absent from school. About 15 students were absent from Leongatha
Primary School in the past month, according to principal Dot Coghlan who said relevant Department of Education exclusion guidelines were being followed to limit contagion. A notice was sent out by Wonthaggi Amateur Basketball Association president Cathy Garnham last week notifying members of two confirmed cases of basketballers with chicken pox. Continued on page 4.
Cricket’s back
Leongatha blooms
Crash alarm
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