THUNDER BAY – Northern Ontario will remain under lockdown for another two weeks, as cases continue to surge across the province.
The province announced late Thursday afternoon that health units in northern parts of the province will remain under lockdown until at least Jan. 23. Students in school boards across the north will be returning to in-person learning on Jan. 11.
The number of active COVID-19 cases in the Thunder Bay District is declining but the medical officer of health is warning we are the exception to the rule and did recommend to the province that the district remain in lockdown for another two weeks.
“That is really to prevent the further spreading of this virus,” said Dr. Janet DeMille, medical officer of health with the Thunder Bay District Health Unit. “This is a time when we don’t want to get COVID, we don’t want to spread it to our families or in our workplaces. We are in the middle of the second wave. We have several months to go.”
The province-wide lockdown went into effect on Dec. 26. In that time, cases have continued to increase and Ontario recorded a record number of new COVID-19 cases on Thursday with 3,519 and the highest number of deaths at 89.
“What is happening here in our area in the Thunder Bay district, especially in the last couple of weeks is the exception and not the rule,” DeMille said.
“That makes me concerned. This is still respiratory virus season. The conditions promote the spread of viruses like COVID-19. What we saw in October and November is we can have a rapid increase in case numbers in our area. We can have outbreaks and super spreader events.”
The Thunder Bay district saw a surge in cases throughout October and November. The number of active cases has declined from more than 100 and now sits at 54, which has been a welcome relief, given what happened in November, DeMille said another surge is likely.
“Although we’ve had a bit of a break, it is not unreasonable we could start to see an increase in case numbers here and a lot of the same things we’ve seen back in November,” she said.
There are also concerns that the number of tests performed in the region declined over the holidays, which could mean there are more cases in the community that have not been detected.
DeMille said COVID-19 is not just a cold or a runny nose and there have been people who have tested positive with very mild symptoms.
“They are COVID positive and they have spread it to others in their family or workplaces,” she said. “The drop in the testing numbers is concerning because maybe there is COVID out there that is spreading and we are not detecting it.”
And while the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine arrived in the city last month and more than 600 people have been immunized, doses are limited and people need to remain vigilant to buy time until more doses become available in the spring.
This is particularly important to protect those who are most vulnerable, primarily seniors living in long-term care facilities.
“We cannot let our guard down. Certainly the shutdown measures do reduce those kinds of interactions where the virus can spread,” DeMille said. “I want to buy time to get that vaccine here and have those high risk groups to be immunized.”
There have been several outbreaks of COVID-19 reported in long-term care facilities in the city of Thunder Bay. The outbreak at Southbridge Roseview Manor has resulted 20 deaths and while the number of active cases is now down to nine residents, DeMille said it shows just how important it is to prevent future outbreaks from occurring.
“It’s been a very challenging and stressful time for the staff and management of that facility and of course the residents and their families,” she said. “This is the kind of thing we absolutely have to avoid and prevent in the future.”
