Two top municipal leaders in Chatham-Kent are giving the first week of the provincial Phase 2 reopening a passing grade.
Mayor Darrin Canniff gave the gradual reopening a B+ while Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Colby gave it a B-.
Dr. Colby said the reopening went fairly smooth and there haven't been many complaints but he was made aware of a few isolated incidents where some people weren't maintaining the proper social distancing. He added it may have been family members who are part of a social circle going out on the town but overall the launch wasn't too bad and better social distancing would have pushed his grade higher.
Colby said he constantly worries that people will forget that COVID-19 is still around and it can quickly flare up as it did in March and April.
"At the very beginning we had no cases and then they started to trickle in. They amplified and that can happen again," said Colby.
Colby said it's a balancing act to keep things moving in the right direction.
"At the moment the level of community transmission is very low in Chatham-Kent, somewhere between very rare to zero and we really want to keep it that way," he said, adding the municipality is doing its best to make a comeback. "We have to be cautious and incremental but not at the expense of making our economy suffer. A lot of people have suffered."
Among those who suffered are at least a dozen businesses who couldn't hang on during the pandemic. Chatham-Kent Mayor Darrin Canniff is reporting that at least 12 local businesses have closed due to COVID-19 and there could be more the municipality doesn't know about. He admits he expected more shops to be affected and is offering a lifeline to those who need it.
In the meantime, Dr. Colby added he has the power to force individuals to get tested if push comes to shove if he deems there's a public health risk to the community. He said by law he can order anyone to get tested under the Health Protection and Promotion Act for any type of communicable disease if he thinks the community is in danger. Colby said he hasn't had to use it so far because the migrant agricultural workers at Greenhill Produce all agreed to get tested.
