TN school district closes due to flu as state faces one of the highest influenza illness rates in US

What This Story Is About

• Tennessee is among the eight states with the most flu activity in the US, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

Why It Matters

• One child’s death was linked to the flu this season in Tennessee, and the state Department of Health has reported 34 outbreaks since September.

What Happens Next

• Coffee County Schools in Middle Tennessee are closed Thursday and Friday amid a surge in cases.

For Context

• The CDC reports that flu activity is very high in Tennessee, but the state is still seeing a lower rate of illness than this time last year.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - Tennessee is one of the states with the most flu activity in the country, according to the most recent report from the Centers for Disease Control.

One Middle Tennessee county is experiencing that first-hand. Coffee County canceled school on Thursday and Friday due to the number of cases it’s seeing in classrooms.

Tennessee among states with highest level of flu activity

Flu activity is considered very high in the Volunteer State. In fact, it falls into the third-highest level on the CDC’s flu activity scale.

The January 31 report from the CDC shows that Oregon has the highest level of flu activity in the U.S.

Tennessee is one of seven states that fall into the third-highest category, making the Volunteer State on par with other southern states like South Carolina, Louisiana and Arkansas.

But that could change soon, with the most recent data from the Tennessee Department of Health showing that the number of flu cases is growing in the Volunteer State.

Cases on the rise in Tennessee

There have been 34 outbreaks since the season began in September, and the death of one child has been tied to the flu, per the TDOH.

The percentage of outpatients with the flu jumped more than 1% in seven days, reaching nearly seven percent.