Advocacy group calls for increased COVID-19 risk mitigation in Manitoba schools
With COVID-19 cases in school-aged children rising across the province, advocacy group Safe Schools Manitoba is calling on the provincial government to increase risk mitigation efforts in the classroom.
Throughout the pandemic, the group, consisting of parents, teachers and community members, has been advocating for vaccinations for children and school staff as well as a mask mandate in schools.
“The third mitigation measure that’s incredibly important and effective is high-quality air ventilation and filtration so that the COVID-19 virus, which we now clearly know is primarily airborne and not spread through the air by droplets, that there are mitigation efforts to stop that transmission in schools,” said Luanne Karn, co-organizer for Safe September.
On Friday, the group set up an information booth at the Manitoba Legislature displaying examples of what they call a “Safe Shared Air Classroom Kit,” which will be delivered to both the premier and ministers of health and education.
The kit includes portable CO2 monitors, portable HEPA filtration units and KN95-type masks for students and school staff.
Safe Schools said the kits are simple and inexpensive measures that can, when layered together, can decrease the risk of airborne transmission of COVID-19.
Karn said she was pleased with the provincial government’s Thursday announcement of $6.8 million that can provide HEPA filtration units for about 6,000 classrooms.
“We need them immediately. Christmas presents. Deliver them in December because the winter months are when we have the most recycled air in the classrooms,” Karn said.
Karn also said the use of cloth masks in the classroom offers inadequate protection and wants all students and staff to wear KN95-type masks. She estimates the cost to be around $30 million.
“The number of cases in children under 12 is increasing, the outbreaks in Manitoba schools are increasing, we believe in keeping schools open,” said Karn. “If this government doesn’t implement these measures, we’ll look at more school shutdowns in January.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.