Schreiber shuts down municipal buildings

Coronavirus Health Advisory for Schreiber

On Friday, March 13th a public notice was released to the residents of the township of Schreiber advising that the municipality was taking steps to help prevent the spread of COVID 19 in the community. Effective from March 14, the Senior Centre, the Municipal Centre, the  Recreation facilities and the Schreiber Public library would be closed to the public until April 5th 2020.

A pandemic had just been declared by the World Health Organization and it was decided that these closures were necessary in order to help limit person to person contact and promote awareness of the situation. As the timing of this announcement coincided with the spring school break, further recommendations were spelled out to inform the public of lowering the risks of exposure. An Emergency Management Committee would be working very closely with Public Health officials to closely monitor the situation as more information became available.

Kim Krause of Schreiber Media Centre spoke with Schreiber CAO Nathan Dias within minutes of the announcement. Up until this point, details were very scarce on if, and when the COVID 19 crisis would have any affect on the town and its operations. Once the announcement was made by the Premier Doug Ford of Ontario that self isolation would be  recommended one could almost feel a major change was looming in the way our day to day lives might be affected.

On Monday, March 16th, an interview with Adam Brown, CEO of the North Shore Health Care Group, was arranged. Mr. Brown was asked if the was any reason for concern, especially to residents in remote areas such as Schreiber, in regards to the likeliness of a coronavirus causing any threat. He noted that we live in a global community and that the fairly recent status update to a pandemic would indicate that anyone who has recently traveled or been in contact with travelers, especially overseas, could pose a possible threat to our communities. Then Mr Brown further emphasized the need to not put too much strain on our healthcare system and is recommending staying away from clinics and other medical centres unless it is absolutely necessary. He then hinted that a possible next step in government procedure to try and halt the spread of the virus might be the banning of all international travel and potential border closures.

A short film based on this information is being produced to inform and update residents of this new development.

Music: Kim Krause