Breaking: Province Declares Elementary Schools Will Remain Virtual Two More Weeks

January 7th 2021

Provincial health officials Drs. David Williams and Dirk Huyer spoke from Queen’s Park today. They have announced that schools will not reopen on January 11th 2020 as planned prior to the December 26th province-wide lockdown. The province will defer reopening in person classes for an additional two weeks in Southern Ontario. Virtual classes will remain in effect. Williams noted during question period that in spite of the lockdown, cases across the provinces are still on the rise.

On Thursday, Ontario reported 3,519 new coronavirus cases and 89 more deaths. York, Peel and Toronto currently make up 54% of cases, a drop from percentages in the 70s, indicating that coronavirus cases in areas outside of these centres are now on the rise. Williams further stated that as a result of the rise, health units and hospitals across the province are experiencing capacity strain.

Williams also stated northern Ontario numbers have also gone up and thus northern health units will remain in lockdown until the 23rd of January. He also stated that there are also 6 known cases of the UK variant of the coronavirus in the province.

Kingston Frontenac Lennox and Addington Public Health asks parents to monitor their child(ren) for symptoms of COVID-19 before they return to school and if they develop symptoms, parents should take their children to be tested. View a full list of symptoms: http://ow.ly/jcyk50D0z7s Kingston reports 13 new cases on January 7th with a total of 56 active cases. During the lockdown, KFL&A public health reminds residents that restrictions on indoor gatherings remain in effect. Household members should not visit people outside of their home or allow non-essential visitors in their home at this time.

At the national level, the Federal Government announced on January 6th that effective midnight Eastern Standard time on January 7th 2021, air travellers 5 years of age or older are now required to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 molecular test result conducted within 72 hours of departure to the airline prior to boarding international flights bound for Canada, regardless of citizenship. See the news release for air travellers. Everyone entering Canada must follow mandatory isolation or quarantine requirements for 14 days. Not respecting the mandatory requirements is a serious offence with consequences and penalties.

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