Some parents and teachers in the Prairie Mountain Health region have expressed their concerns about the province’s back to school plan — with the region now elevated to the “orange” level.
A series of protests were held in Brandon on Thursday by a group called “Safe September Brandon“ — hoping to see more health measures implemented in schools, before their reopening.
In a press conference on Thursday afternoon, chief public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin addressed some of those concerns.
Roussin says health officials raised the alert level to orange, because of a number of indicators, resulting in restrictions limiting the number of people at indoor and outdoor gatherings to 10 people. Also, masks are now required at indoor public places and outdoor gatherings of four or more people.
Roussin explained why the restrictions are not being applied to schools, saying "just like restaurants, retail and other sectors, we did not apply this to schools at this time. Schools in the Prairie Mountain Health region are not changing their level of restriction," but added, "our schools province-wide are prepared to do so, because we know things change quite quickly.”
A chart released by the province shows a number of restrictions that could be implemented during the “orange” response level. However, at this point, no other sector in PMH is affected by the orange level restrictions, other than the new rules for group sizes and masks wearing.
For more information on the province's back to school plan, click here.
