Glen St PS closes due to COVID-19 outbreak
Durham health department closes three public elementary schools
By Courtney Bachar/The Oshawa Express/LJI Reporter
Three Durham public elementary schools, including one in Oshawa, are closing immediately due to COVID-19 outbreaks.
According to the Durham Region Health Department, Glen St PS in Oshawa, Vaughn Willard PS and Westcreek PS in Pickering will be closed for a minimum of two weeks.
“Due to the number of cases and the number of staff and students who have been dismissed, we have made the decision to close the school,” reads a letter from the health department which was sent to the affected school communities.
Students will be switching to online learning while their schools are closed for in-person learning.
The earliest return date to in-person learning for students affected by the school closures would be April 12, however, due to the April break, the earliest date for students to return to school will be April 19.
Glen St PS currently has six active cases, while Vaughn Willard PS has eight and Westcreek has seven.
As of March 29, there are 115 active cases of COVID-19 across Durham District School Board (DDSB) schools.
Durham Region Health Department is also “strongly recommending” that all staff and students at those schools seek COVID-19 testing to help the health department identify additional cases of the virus in the schools.
Further in Oshawa, there is one COVID case at Adelaide McLaughlin PS, one case at Beau Valley PS, one case at Colonel J.E. Farewell PS, one case at Coronation PS, one case at Dr. C.F. Cannon PS, seven cases at Dr. S.J. Phillips PS, one case at Elsie MacGill PS, one case at Jeanne Sauvé PS, four cases at Lakewoods PS, one case at Norman G. Powers PS, one case at Queen Elizabeth PS, and three cases at Walter E. Harris PS.
There are also three cases at G.L. Roberts CVI, two cases at Maxwell Heights SS, one case at R.S. McLaughlin CVI, and six cases at O’Neill CVI.
In the Durham Catholic District School Board, there are currently 36 active cases of COVID-19, including three cases at Oshawa schools – one at Archbishop Anthony Meagher Catholic Continuing Education Centre, one at Monsignor Paul Dwyer Catholic High School, and one case at St. Anne Catholic School.
Durham Region Health Department reported 126 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, March 28, which brings the total active cases in the region to 997. Of those, 963 people are in home isolation and 34 are in hospital with nine in the ICU.
There are also 74 total confirmed COVID-19 variant cases across the region.
In Oshawa, 29 new cases were reported Sunday, with another 49 reported Saturday, which brings the city’s active total cases to 242. Of those, five are in hospital with one in the ICU with the rest in home isolation.