After a quiet week in the New Westminster school district, two more local schools have seen COVID-19 exposures.
École Glenbrook Middle School was added to the Fraser Health school exposures list over the weekend for an exposure that occurred on Nov. 15. École Herbert Spencer Elementary School was added this morning (Monday, Nov. 22) for an exposure on Nov. 16, 17 and 18.
It's the second reported exposure of the 2021/22 school year for both schools.
An "exposure" means that someone who has since tested positive for COVID-19 was in the school during their potentially infectious period on the date or dates in question and that other people may be at risk of having come in contact with the virus. Health officials do not publish the number of cases involved, so it's not known whether the dates involve one person or multiple cases.
The latest exposures come just as B.C. is gearing up to provide the Pfizer vaccine for children aged five to 11. The vaccine was approved by Health Canada last week, and the province will provide details of the immunization rollout tomorrow (Tuesday, Nov. 23).
Ten of School District 40's 12 schools have seen COVID-19 exposures so far this school year, as have two independent schools in New Westminster. So far, F.W. Howay Elementary School and Queensborough Middle School have had no reported exposures in this school year.
COVID EXPOSURES IN NEW WESTMINSTER SCHOOLS
Here’s what has transpired in the 2021/22 school year so far in New Westminster:
- École Qayqayt Elementary: Sept. 8 (reported by B.C. School COVID Tracker; predated change to Fraser Health notifications)
- École Qayqayt Elementary: Sept. 20, 21, 22 (reported by B.C. School COVID Tracker; predated change to Fraser Health notifications)
- Urban Academy (independent): Sept. 22, 23, 24 (reported on Fraser Health site Sept. 29)
- Herbert Spencer Elementary: Sept. 21 (reported on Fraser Health site Oct. 1)
- Lord Kelvin Elementary: Sept. 24 (reported on Fraser Health site Sept. 29)
- Lord Tweedsmuir Elementary: Sept. 21, 22, 23, 24 (reported on Fraser Health site Oct. 1; B.C. School COVID Tracker confirms this is at least three separate cases)
- New Westminster Secondary: Sept. 22, 23, 24 (reported on Fraser Health site Oct. 3)
- Lord Kelvin Elementary: Sept. 22, 23, 28 (dates added on Fraser Health site Oct. 3)
- New Westminster Secondary: Sept. 28 (date added on Fraser Health site Oct. 4)
- Urban Academy (independent): Sept. 27, 28 (dates added on Fraser Health site Oct. 1)
- Glenbrook Middle School: Sept. 25, 26, 28, 29, Oct. 1 (listed on Fraser Health site Oct. 7)
- École Qayqayt Elementary School: Sept. 27, 28, 29, Oct. 1 (dates added on Fraser Health site Oct. 7)
- Skwo:wech Elementary School: Sept. 23, 24, 27, 28, 29 (listed on Fraser Health site Oct. 7)
- École Qayqayt Elementary School: Oct. 4,5 (listed on Fraser Health site Oct. 9; B.C. School COVID Tracker confirms this is at least two separate exposures)
- New Westminster Secondary: Oct. 4, 5, 6 (dates added on Fraser Health site Oct. 9)
- École Qayqayt Elementary School: Oct. 5, 6, 7, 8 (B.C. School COVID Tracker confirms at least two separate exposures involving this date range, with emails sent Oct. 11)
- École Qayqayt Elementary School: Oct. 6, 7, 8, 11, 12 (separate case from above; one full class sent into isolation)
- Fraser River Middle School: Oct. 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 15 (reported on Fraser Health site Oct. 19)
- Lord Kelvin Elementary School: Oct. 14, 15 (reported on Fraser Health site Oct. 20)
- New Westminster Secondary School: Oct. 15, 18 (added on Fraser Health site Oct. 22)
- New Westminster Secondary School: Oct. 13, 19, 20 (added on Fraser Health site Oct. 23)
- Urban Academy (independent): Oct. 18, 19 (added on Fraser Health site Oct. 24)
- New Westminster Secondary School: Oct. 21 (added on Fraser Health site Oct. 27)
- Al-Hidayah (independent): Oct. 18, 20, 21, 22 (added on Fraser Health site Oct. 27)
- Al-Hidayah (independent): Oct. 25 (added on Fraser Health site Oct. 31)
- École Qayqayt Elementary School: Oct. 25, 26 (added on Fraser Health site Nov. 2)
- Lord Kelvin Elementary School: Nov. 1, 2, 3 (added on Fraser Health site Nov. 8)
- Queen Elizabeth Elementary School: Nov. 1, 2 (added on Fraser Health site Nov. 8)
- Skwo:wech Elementary School: Nov. 1, 2, 3, 4 (added on Fraser Health site Nov. 9)
- Connaught Heights Elementary School: Nov. 3, 4, 5 (added on Fraser Health site Nov. 10)
- Fraser River Middle School: Nov. 2 (added on Fraser Health site Nov. 13)
- Al-Hidayah School: Nov. 2, 3, 4 (added on Fraser Health site Nov. 12)
- Glenbrook Middle School: Nov. 15 (added on Fraser Health site Nov. 21)
- Herbert Spencer: Nov. 16, 17, 18 (added on Fraser Health site Nov. 22)
WHERE TO FIND OUT ABOUT NEW WESTMINSTER SCHOOL EXPOSURES
Fraser Health
New Westminster school exposures will be listed at Fraser Health’s school exposures webpage.
B.C. School COVID Tracker
This parent-run database uses information provided directly by parents and verified by official health authority letters. There's a searchable database online.
Exposure Watch
This site, created by New Westminster parent Gabriel Bauman, provides a listing of COVID-19 "hotspots" in B.C. schools, as well as a search function to find out school-specific information. Parents can also sign up for exposure alerts and report exposures. (Note that the listings may include both confirmed and unconfirmed exposures; they are identified as such, with confirmed exposures including documentation.)
Follow Julie MacLellan on Twitter @juliemaclellan.
Email Julie, [email protected].
