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12 Coquitlam area schools with COVID-19 exposures as parents rush to get shots for their kids

Efforts to get jabs into the arms of Tri-City children are ramping as school exposure cases plummet in the last few weeks of classroom learning; still Coquitlam area schools still getting hit with exposures
Diane Strandberg
Diane Strandberg
Child getting vaccinated Getty Image
A child gets vaccinated. As of last week, six. per cent of children in Fraser Health had received COVID-19 shots.Getty Images

Efforts to get jabs into the arms of Tri-City children are ramping as school exposure cases plummet in the last few weeks of classroom learning.

However, there are still 12 schools with recent COVID-19 exposures, three of the most recent in Coquitlam.

On Thursday (June 3), Fraser Health will host a live-streamed town hall for parents that will include advice from Dr. Elizabeth Brodkin, the chief medical health officer for Fraser Health, as well as information from a pediatrician and a child life specialist.

The event details can be found at fraserhealth.ca/events.

The online meeting comes as many parents have been pushing to get their children vaccinated.

By early last week, as many as 45% children between the ages of 12 and 17 had registered for a shot, according to Fraser Health, with 6% already vaccinated.

Parents are required to register each child in order to be eligible for a vaccination, though vaccination centres may make blocks of time available for families to visit together during one appointment time. 

'LIGHT AT END OF TUNNEL,' SAYS SD43 SUPERINTENDENT

The plan is to have most children between the ages of 12 to 17 vaccinated by the end of June.

The fast-tracked vaccination for children spells good news for School District 43 — the third largest in the province — which is looking forward to a typical school year in September after a challenging year of restrictions, exposures at almost all schools in the district and concerns about transmission.

The exposure situation in Coquitlam area schools generally matched coronavirus circulation in the community, with spikes in November and April, according to reports compiled by the Tri-City News.

Still, with just a few weeks left of school, district superintendent Patricia Gartland is not yet ready to let down her guard, according to a letter sent recently to parents. 

“As we near the end of the 2020-2021 school year, we are starting to see light at the end of the COVID-19 pandemic tunnel,” said Garland; however, it’s not over yet, she further stated. “School District 43 remains committed to the safety of all students and staff and we will follow all safety protocols in the coming weeks.”

That means grad celebrations are mostly socially distanced drive-thru events and after-grad parties are virtual.

HERE ARE THE SCHOOLS WITH THE LATEST COVID 19 EXPOSURES

Meanwhile, some schools continue to deal with exposures, with letters being sent out to parents for multiple dates the week of May 17 to 21, but only a few days last week.

Currently, there are 12 Coquitlam area public schools flagged for coronavirus on Fraser Health’s school exposure website, but only three schools with exposures Tuesday following May long weekend.

Schools with exposures last week were all in Coquitlam: Panorama Heights elementary (May 25); Coquitlam Alternative Basic Education, or CABE (May 25 and 26); and Pinetree secondary (May 25).

Schools with exposures the previous week include:

Coquitlam

• Dr. Charles Best secondary: May 18 to 21

• Gleneagle secondary: May 20, 21

• Pinetree secondary: May 19, 20, 21 and 25

• RC MacDonald elementary: May 18

Port Coquitlam

• Riverside secondary: May 19 and 20

• Minnekhada middle: May 19 and 20

• Citadel middle: May 18 to 21

• Central elementary: May 18 to 21

• Kilmer elementary: May 18

• Leigh elementary: May 18