THUNDER BAY - The province-wide lockdown is expected to end next week but the medical officer of health in the Thunder Bay District says it would not be a surprise if it is extended and when things do reopen, a staged approach should be used.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if they kept some sort of complete lockdown going past Feb. 9 next week,” said Dr. Janet DeMille, medical officer of health with the Thunder Bay District Health Unit. “There are still concerns very much on the horizon.”
The provincial government instituted a province-wide lockdown on Dec. 26 in order to mitigate spread following the holiday season. In January, a state of emergency and stay at home order was declared and the lockdown was extended to Feb. 11.
DeMille said the provincial government and public health officials will have a lot of factors to consider when it comes to deciding whether or not the lockdown is lifted.
“I think there is a lot of discussions happening at the provincial level about the lockdown and if measures need to continue,” she said.
“The lockdown has been successful across the province in terms of dropping the numbers, especially in the hotspots. I think what the government will be considering is the impact of the COVID-19 variants that are increasingly popping up across the province.”
In the Thunder Bay District there are 118 active cases following a drop of 28 on Friday. Recently, surges of new cases have been associated with outbreaks at the Thunder Bay Correctional Centre and the Thunder Bay District Jail, but cases related to community spread and travel are still arising.
DeMille said Ontario is still very much in a second wave of COVID-19 and cautions that in other parts of the world where COVID-19 variants are more prominent, lifting lockdowns has resulted in a third wave.
When it comes time to reopen, DeMille said she would like to see a staged approached similar to the one used in the summer following the first lockdown in the spring.
“That’s always the balance between opening up and locking down,” she said. “We know lockdowns work. We saw it work since the Christmas lockdown that we have all been in. It’s trying to find that right balance. I think we have tools to be able to open certain things. We had a staged approach last summer and I think that worked quite well.”
One spring tradition that may not go ahead despite lockdowns being lifted is March Break, with reports that the provincial government is considering cancelling it this year.
DeMille said she would be okay if March Break went ahead if the numbers remain low.
“If we can control the virus and its low level that keeps schools safe if they are open,” she said. “I think people just need to be mindful of not gathering, not socializing. The usual things we do on March Break.”
There is also hope that COVID-19 vaccines will continue to roll out, though there have been delayed shipments of both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccine.
“Moderna is typically delivered across the province every three weeks,” DeMille said. “I believe there has been some Moderna distributed and some available to us as well that should be arriving. But primarily Thunder Bay has been a site for the Pfizer vaccine. We are looking forward to increasing amounts of that vaccine coming to our area certainly by the end of February.”
