23 student association members infected with coronavirus after Greece trip

A cluster of 23 university students from Rotterdam student association SSR-R were found infected with the SARS-CoV-2 novel coronavirus after a trip to Greece. The association was subsequently excluded from participating in Eurekaweek, the introduction for new students starting at Erasmus University which starts on Sunday.

All those infected entered into quarantine and a source and contact investigation was carried out by the local branch of the GGD municipal health service. “If a participant in these activities turns out to be infected, action will always be taken in consultation with the GGD,” said Rutger Engels, Rector Magnificus of the university

The association said it notified the university of the infected students on Friday evening, according to Erasmus Magazine. It called their exclusion from Eurekaweek activities “disproportionate.”

“The infected members would not have been involved in our Eurekaweek program next week,” said SSR-R chair Jelle Mooij to the magazine. “We especially do not understand why the online activities cannot continue.”

“I understand that this week is important for the association, but I want to exclude all risks of infections. I also think it necessary that the situation that has arisen is thoroughly analyzed,” Engels said.

Student associations at Erasmus not only have to follow government rules limiting introduction activities, which include a ban on alcohol use, but they also have to follow a set of guidelines to promote the overall well-being of their students. The protocol includes making sure that people get enough sleep, stay hydrated, and eat three meals daily.

“As a board, we have repeatedly urged our members to observe the measures,” Mooij said. “In Greece, too, our members wore masks where necessary.”

Engels said he wanted to know more about how closely the association's members followed the protocol during their stay abroad.