Arizona dorm virus wastewater, dorms found higher viral loads in wastewater

 Arizona dorm virus wastewater, dorms found higher viral loads in wastewater.

The University of Arizona found early signs of COVID-19 in a student dorm this week by testing wastewater and were able to head off an outbreak there, school leaders announced Thursday.

Researchers at the school have looked for traces of the virus in wastewater samples taken from the greater Tucson area since March and have gathered samples from 20 buildings on the UA campus since school started.

Earlier this week, data collected from the dorms found higher viral loads in wastewater samples taken from Likins Hall. A team led by Dr. Ian Pepper, director of the UA's Water and Energy Sustainable Technology Center, tested the samples five more times to confirm the findings, said UA President Dr. Robert Robbins. 

The university on Wednesday tested the entire dorm, about 311 people, and found two positive cases, Robbins said.

The two individuals, who were asymptomatic, are now in isolation, preventing further spread in Likins Hall.

UA required students living on campus to get tested for COVID-19 before returning to the dorms. Both positive individuals would have been tested, and would have had negative results prior to moving into the dorms, per UA's protocols. 

Off-campus students were strongly encouraged to get tested for COVID-19, and the university also will regularly test random populations on campus.

The wastewater testing provides a way to monitor for potential cases, particularly asymptomatic ones, beyond individual tests for the virus, UA leaders said.

Pepper and his team will regularly collect wastewater samples from buildings on campus, including all dorms, throughout the school year, he told The Republic in July. 

The data will help determine a possible outbreak in a specific building or dorm, help the school test students and mitigate the spread of the virus, he said.