Northern Ontario’s shutdown has been extended for another two weeks.
Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. David Williams announced Northern Ontario’s shutdown will last until at least January 23, aligning with the shutdown period in Southern Ontario.
However, elementary and secondary students in the seven Northern Ontario public health unit regions will return to in-person learning on Monday January 11, as planned.
Williams explains these measures are in place so Ontarians stay at home as much as possible, to minimize transmission of the virus and prevent hospitals from becoming overwhelmed.
At the same time, Williams acknowledges the fact Northern Ontario students are not able to learn at home as effectively due to limited access to reliable Internet service.
Premier Doug Ford says they considered current public health trends, in consultation with health officials, when making these decisions.
“With the public health trends where they are across the province, our priority remains keeping students, teachers, school staff, and all Ontarians safe. That’s why we’re extending the remote learning period for students in Southern Ontario and the shutdown period for Northern Ontario, while continuing to provide financial relief for parents through the Support for Learners program as well as electricity rate relief for all time-of-use customers. We have to get the numbers down and today’s measures will help us continue to stop the spread of this deadly virus.”
In the announcement today, Southern Ontario’s remote learning was also been extended until January 25.
The province says these measures will be evaluated after 14 days to determine if it is safe to lift any restrictions or if they need to be extended further.
