The Skeena
A citizens initiative tracking the spread of COVID through B.C.’s school system released an alarming finding this week. Nearly one-third of all schools in the province have reported some type of exposure.
“We now have 28.6% of BC schools with exposure events,” BC COVID School Tracker wrote in a recent Facebook post. The initiative, which crowdsources information from all over B.C., calculates that there have been 1125 such exposures to date affecting 555 schools.
It recently disclosed a new Skeena exposure, at Centennial Christian School in Terrace. Until now, it seems there was only one previous exposure in the region, at Roosevelt Park Elementary in Prince Rupert.
Public health experts say the risks of infection in schools are realtively low as long as people take precautions.
“Although COVID-19 has a low infection rate in children (ages 0 to 19), it is still important that schools follow public health principles like staying home when sick, socializing within learning groups and minimizing physical contact, practicing hand hygiene and respiratory etiquette, and cleaning and disinfecting frequently,” the B.C. Centre for Disease Control writes.
This is a stressful time for both parents and children. For tips on how to deal with the anxiety check out these mental health suggestions from Skeena Strong’s ‘Fighting COVID In The Skeena’ event in October.
