Year 12 Students In Melbourne Struck By Gastro Outbreak Days Before Sitting Final Exams

gastro outbreak

A number of year 12 students in Melbourne have given a new meaning to the term “shit outta luck” after being hit with a nasty gastro outbreak just days before their final exams.


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39 students from Footscray City College have come down with gastro after an outbreak at their graduation dinner at Flemington Racecourse on October 18.

Although the Victorian Health Department has confirmed that they’ve got the nasty stomach bug, the cause of the outbreak is currently unknown.

“It’s certainly gastro, but whether or not it’s food poisoning hasn’t been confirmed yet,” Department of Health spokesman Graeme Walker told news.com.au.

The students were photographed enjoying the graduation last week, blissfully unaware of the unfortunately shitty situation that was about to wreak havoc on all of the hard work they’ve put in this year.

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2019 Grads getting loose!

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In equally poor timing, the Victorian Racing Club is now under investigation after the incident, just days before the Spring Racing Carnival kicks off at Flemington.

“The Victoria Racing Club and its onsite catering partner Peter Rowland have been informed that several students became ill in the days following a school function at Flemington Racecourse,” a Flemington Racecourse spokesperson said.

“The relevant authorities were notified and extensive and rigorous cleaning of the food preparation, serving areas and venue facilities was undertaken as per City of Melbourne instructions for a viral infection.”

Victims of the frankly shitty virus have been advised to stay home for the next 48 hours, or until symptoms pass to avoid spreading the outbreak. However, this might not be possible considering year 12 students across the country are just days away from their final high school exams.

It’s been a few years now since I sat my own year 12 exams, but I remember being shit-scared enough as it was, let alone without a storm a’brewin’ in my guts.

The first exams of the year kick off on Monday, with main subjects like English, maths and psychology first off the rank. The VCE exam season will run until November 20, when students can focus on the more important things in life… like stressing non-stop about their standardised test results until they get released.

Footscray City College principal Angelique den Brinker has reached out to students to offer support during this difficult time, but says no students have requested special consideration for their exams.

“The school has been in contact with students and staff to provide them with support if needed,” she said, according to Townsville Bulletin. “We are continuing to support students as they prepare for their Year 12 exams.”

All shitty jokes aside, Year 12 is a wildly stressful year where you’re basically convinced that these few weeks of exams will make or break your entire future. Coming down with an unfortunate illness like this just days before your exams would be truly heartbreaking, especially for those students that have worked their butts off all year long.

For the sake of the poor students in question, here’s hoping the shitty situation is cleared up nice and quickly so they can focus on their exams and end their high school journey on a good note.

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