Residents of two Columbia University residences should receive COVID-19 tests immediately after the virus was detected in the building’s sewer, according to a campus store.
Those who refuse to be checked are subject to eviction from the campus home, officials said in a note Monday.
“The presence of Covid-19 has been detected in wastewater from both Broadway Residence Hall and Wien Residence Hall through the improved Columbia campus testing program,” the school wrote Monday.
Several municipalities are testing sewers to monitor the prevalence of COVID-19 among certain populations.
Bergen County, which began testing wastewater in partnership with Colombia last year, reported high levels of coronavirus in the sewer on Tuesday, according to a report.
The latest coronavirus alarm in Columbia was sent after two people tested positive for the virus last week at another campus residence.
“When a student chooses not to comply with Columbia’s requirements, they endanger both the well-being of the community and their own privilege of living on campus,” the note said. “Students who violate the Columbia Community Health Compact and the testing requirement will be directed to Dean’s Discipline, which could lead to the loss of campus housing.”
Students must sign a “compact” showing coronavirus practices on the Manhattan campus.
These include “participating in testing and tracking contacts when necessary and isolation and quarantine protocols when necessary”, according to the document.
