A Pepperdine student attending classes at the university’s Malibu campus has tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, the university confirmed on Thursday evening, March 19, in a story first broken by the Pepperdine Graphic.
“The university learned today of two additional confirmed positive COVID-19 test results within the Pepperdine community, including the first known COVID-19 case on the Malibu campus,” a press release from the university stated. “The student did not live in university housing and is now in isolation.”
This marks the first confirmed COVID-19 case in the Malibu community, although county officials have not provided data indicating how many, if any, additional patients in Malibu have tested positive for the disease.
As of 3:56 p.m. on Thursday, LA County Public Health confirmed a total of 231 cases across the county; however, data was not available specifying if any were in Malibu because locations with populations fewer than 25,000 “have been added to the nearest city or community.” There was no clear indication which “city or community” Malibu’s data would be added to; West Los Angeles had two reported cases, Pacific Palisades had five, Calabasas had one and Santa Monica had two, as of Thursday afternoon.
The announcement marks the third Pepperdine student to test positive for the disease; the other two students had been enrolled in Pepperdine’s London study abroad program and were not taking classes in Malibu.
This story will be updated as more information becomes available.