The province’s Chief Medical Officer of Health says complacency has led to the COVID-19 outbreak currently being seen in the metro region.
85 confirmed or presumptive positive cases of the virus were reported yesterday as all metro regional schools were closed, and all sport and recreational activities right across the province were suspended.
All non-essential travel in and out of the metro region is being discouraged at this time.
⚠️ We are advising against travel in and out of the St. John's/metro area at this time. Travel to and from this area should be for essential purposes only.
— Dr. Janice Fitzgerald (@CMOH_NL) February 10, 2021
Dr. Janice Fitzgerald says a large number of cases are related to the school system and through sports teams.
She indicates that what’s happening in the metro region should serve as a warning to the rest of the province.
Fitzgerald says she’s surprised by the large numbers of contacts, and the rest of the province needs to take a lesson from the metro region and reduce those contacts.
Meanwhile, Dr. Fitzgerald is warning that the province is in for a “rough period” in the coming days and weeks.
She called this outbreak “the big one” and told reporters yesterday she doesn’t expect case counts to drop today.
While she didn’t want to make any predictions, she doesn’t expect the number of cases today to be lower than the 85 announced yesterday.