Sarnia-Lambton is now officially back into grey lockdown in the response framework. One minute after midnight the move went into effect in response to increasing cases of COVID-19. With 18 new cases and 17 recoveries Sunday the active case count stands at 171. The grey-lockdown restricts get-togethers to members of the same household and limits capacity for grocery stores, and retail stores.
The fear of rapid community spread prompted the move by the province but it has not been well received in the community. Several small business owners have vowed to remain open and face whatever fines may come. One small gym owner has started a GoFundMe page to help with the court battle that is expected. It’s already raised close to $5,000.
The Lambton-Kent District School Board has announced they are being forced to close a high school in the system because of COVID-19. North Lambton Secondary School in Forest will be closed this entire week over staffing concerns. There are active cases in the school and with the number of people being assessed there won’t be enough staff members available to assist with in school learning. Classes are expected to resume next Monday March 22nd.
As of the last update on Friday, Chatham-Kent’s active case count stood at 61. The new numbers will be released later this morning. The active cases in Windsor-Essex rose to 313 Sunday with 25 new cases. In Ontario Sunday there were 1,747 new cases logged.