COVID-19 outbreak closes Dunnville school
A Dunnville elementary school will be closed for two weeks after five positive cases of COVID-19 were found within the school community over the weekend.
Mike McDonald, director of education with the local Catholic school board, cited the number of active cases, including those individuals recently identified as close contacts" in the board's decision to move all learning at St. Michael's Catholic Elementary School online until March 22 and suspend child care programs.
Citing privacy concerns, the board did not specify whether the affected individuals are students or staff members.
Board chair Rick Petrella thanked St. Michael's families for their understanding, saying information on asymptomatic testing at the school will be coming very soon to add another layer of safety for our students, staff and community."
There are active cases among students at four other Haldimand-Norfolk schools, including three cases at MacKinnon Park Secondary School in Caledonia.
Two Norfolk farms are also dealing with COVID-19, with one migrant worker at EZ Grow Farms in Frogmore and one at Ryder Farms in Lynedoch testing positive upon arrival in Canada after testing negative in their home countries.
According to the farms, both workers are feeling well and not showing any COVID-19 symptoms. They are in self-isolation, as are the workers they travelled with.
Vaccinations increasing
A recent rise in cases prompted the province to move Haldimand-Norfolk into the orange level of COVID-19 restrictions on Monday. Meanwhile vaccinations are increasing, with some 3,000 residents - mainly seniors over 80 - getting their first dose over the weekend.
Norfolk EMS chief Sarah Page, who leads Haldimand-Norfolk's vaccination task force, said a very successful" trial run at the Cayuga arena - which saw 600 to 700 get their shots each day - left her confident the site can handle 1,000 to 1,200 vaccinations per 12-hour shift as supply increases.
Another large-scale vaccination clinic is expected to open at the Delhi area in the middle of April, and a smaller clinic in Vittoria continues to vaccinate 200 to 240 residents per day.
As well, a clinic at Norfolk General Hospital is currently running seven days a week.
As we have access to other vaccines, there may be other ways and routes that we're getting them to the public as fast as we can," Page said, noting that pharmacies and family doctors remain part of the strategy.
Haldimand-Norfolk is responsible for vaccinations on Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation, and Page said 444 band members were vaccinated in weekend clinics on the reserve, with more to come.
Dr. Shanker Nesathurai surprised residents on Friday by announcing he will be leaving his post as Haldimand-Norfolk's medical officer of health on May 21.
On Monday, he told reporters it was good time to make a change, predicting that by mid-May the vaccine rollout will be well underway and a good number" of migrant farm workers will have arrived.
May seemed like the appropriate time to make the transition," said Nesathurai, who said he has not made any firm decisions" about his next career move.
It's been a long year through the pandemic (and) an extraordinarily busy time for the members of the public health service staff," he said.
J.P. Antonacci's reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative. The funding allows him to report on stories about the regions of Haldimand and Norfolk.