News organizations across the globe have featured the Zika virus outbreak as people try to learn as much as possible about this rapidly-spreading epidemic. The concentration of cases in South and Central America has compromised many travel plans, including Los Manos Unidos’ spring break trip to Nicaragua.

Trip coordinator Rebecca Leef sent an email out Tuesday saying that she would not be going on the trip due to concerns about possible student exposure to Zika.

“It is a large responsibility and risk with all the news and warnings that are coming out,” Leef wrote. “To go ahead with this, as a school-affiliated trip, is something that would go against our instincts to keep the students’ safety as the primary focus.”

The trip was cancelled when only four of 22 students still expressed interest in going after the email was sent. Families are able to get half the cost of the trip refunded, and a parent representative is trying to negotiate a larger refund with the travel company.

While many parents contacted Leef expressing their support of her dedication to the kids’ safety and agreed concern about the virus, some were disappointed in Leef’s decision.

“After me and my parents did some research on the virus, it seemed that the virus’s effects were all relatively mild, nothing life-threatening if symptoms are shown at all,” junior Molly Mordan said. “We thought it wouldn’t be too much of a health risk for me to go, and Zika is nothing worse than something else I could be exposed to in a country like Nicaragua.”

Zika’s symptoms include a rash, bloodshot eyes, fever and joint pain for most travelers, though these only show in four out of five patients, according to Dr. David Wolfe, Medical Director of Traveler’s Medical Service.

As long as students follow the CDC and WHO guidelines, it’s safe for them to travel, Wolfe said. But he also said that there have been a few reports of a neurological disorder which can lead to paralysis, Guillain-Barre,  developing after the virus.

“There is so much unknown, and that’s the scary part about the Zika virus,” Leef said. “For every source that says all these scary statistics, there is another source that says we can travel and that we’re safe. But there is still so much unknown that it is a risk.”