Nearly 20 Charlottetown area schools in Prince Edward Island have cancelled classes for at least the next three days, due to positive cases of COVID-19.
Six additional cases were reported yesterday. All are under 19 years old, with four of the latest cases under ten years old.
At this point, the cases have not been linked to travel outside of the province.
Premier Dennis King says this is very concerning, “This is the first time since the pandemic began in March 2020 that we have to declare an outbreak in a school setting in Prince Edward Island.”
Chief Public Health Officer for PEI Dr. Heather Morrison says currently there are over 50 close contacts identified and that list is growing, “The situation at West Royalty Elementary School is considered an outbreak. We are erring on the side of caution, assuming the new cases are the highly transmissible Delta variant. COVID-19, including the Delta variant, seeks out those who are not vaccinated and that is what we are experiencing. Over 40,000 people in PEI are currently unvaccinated, including those who are not eligible. This is an evolving and concerning situation. Our investigation continues, with contact tracing and testing currently underway. Until we can identify a link to travel, we will make decisions based on there being community transmission of COVID-19 in PEI.”
Prince Edward Island currently has 14 active cases of COVID-19.
