The Tri-Cities has seen a sharp drop in COVID-19 cases in recent weeks.
But schools in this region are still getting hit with exposures — and many with multiple dates.
Over the weekend, four Port Coquitlam schools were identified as having COVID-19 exposures or additional exposure dates during the week of Oct. 18 to 22, according to Fraser Health.
They are:
- École des Pionniers de Maillardville (SD93), a French language school, with additional dates of Oct. 18 and 19 added to earlier exposure notices
- Archbishop Carney Regional Secondary (Independent), with exposure dates of Oct. 19 and 20
- Kilmer Elementary, with Oct. 18 and 19 exposures
- Maple Creek Middle, with Oct. 18 and 19 exposures
There are now 11 schools in the Tri-Cities with exposure dates listed on the Fraser Health school exposure website.
The information comes as teachers are calling for more transparency and clarity around exposure notices for schools.
The BC Teachers Federation said a study of COVID-19 information provided by B.C.’s health authorities found numerous discrepancies.
“It’s unacceptable that, over a year-and-a-half into this pandemic, there is still no province-wide consistency in how exposures and clusters in schools are defined and reported,” stated BCTF President Teri Mooring in a press release.
“Parents and teachers look to their school district and local health authority for information about what’s happening in their schools, and it has become very clear that the information provided and the communication to school communities is not painting an accurate picture."
"Trust in the system has been broken.”
It wants the province to:
- standardize definitions of exposure, cluster, and outbreak across all health authorities
- take steps to address reported delays in contact tracing in all health authorities and in particular the Northern Health region
- address transparency and consistency concerns by posting and communicating all school exposure notices broadly to school communities
Here are the current school exposure dates for the Tri-Cities:
COQUITLAM
- Maillard Middle: Oct. 13, 14, 15 and 18
- Scott Creek Middle: Oct. 13 and 14
- Gleneagle Secondary: Oct. 14 and 15
- Pinetree Secondary: Oct. 18 and 19
PORT COQUITLAM
- École des Pionniers de Maillardville (SD93): Oct. 12, 13, 18 and 19
- Archbishop Carney Regional Secondary (Indep.): Oct. 19 and 20
- James Park Elementary: Oct. 18
- Kilmer Elementary: Oct 18 and 19
- Kwayhquitlum Middle: Oct. 18
- Pitt River Middle: Oct. 13, 14 and 15
- Maple Creek Middle: Oct. 18 and 19
Meanwhile, local health area COVID-19 cases are continuing to trend downward in the Tri-Cities, with 114 recorded between Oct. 10 and 16, according to the BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC).
This marks a 10 per cent drop compared to the previous count of 127 between Oct. 3 and 9, which is calculated via the Geographic Distribution of COVID-19 by Local Health Area of Case Residence data.
- with files from Kyle Balzer, Tri-City News
