St. Vital school among several in Manitoba moving to remote learning as COVID-19 case numbers climb

A school in Winnipeg's St. Vital neighbourhood is among a number of Manitoba schools shifting to online learning for two weeks to prevent the spread of COVID-19, after several cases were confirmed amongstaff members and students.

Louis Riel School Divisionsuperintendent Christian Michalikannounced the shift to online learningatcole Marie-Anne Gabouryina letter to parents and guardianson Friday.

As of Friday, there are 12 positive cases at the school among both students and staff, Michalik told CBC News in an emailed statement Saturday.

As a result, 103 studentsor 26 per cent of the totalstudent population are required to self-isolate at home, he wrote.

In his letter to parents, Michalikwrote that if in-school classes continued, the division would likely find itself unable to adequately staff the schooldue to the spread of the illness.

The decision will prevent the spread in the school, and ensure staff can offer remote learning for the next two weeks, the letter stated.

All students in the K-8 school will learn at home from Monday, April 26, to Friday, May 7, butparents and guardians who are essential workers can call the school to make in-school learning arrangements.

The situation will be reassessed prior to May 10, Michalik's letter said.

More cases in schools

At least fourother schools in the province have also recently movedto remote learning, as COVID-19 case numbers climb.

All three schools inthe Interlake town ofGimli made that change last week.

As of Thursday,five cases of COVID-19 have been identified that are connected withGimli High School, including four confirmed cases involving a more contagious coronavirus variant, a notice on the school divisions website says.

There are also four cases at Gimli's Dr. George JohnsonMiddle School, with two instances involving a variant of concern, andSigurbjorg StefanssonEarly School has five cases, with one variant of concern case. An estimated 73 families are considered close contacts, the Evergreen School Division's website says.

The Gimli schools will stay withremote learning until at least April 30, but the divisionwill decide next week when in-person classes can resume,based on the number of cases, contact tracing and staffing capacity, the notice said.

Elsewhere, Pilot Mound Collegiate Institutehas also shifted to remote learning until May 3, its website says. The province's online dashboard says in the two weeks leading up to April 20, there were10 cases of COVID-19 at theschool in the small town, which is about 150 kilometres southwest of Winnipeg.

There were 244 cases of COVID-19 reported in all Manitobaschools in the same time periodand 70 cases involving coronavirus variants of concern, according to provincial data.

The province has saidCOVID-19 cases among younger Manitobansare increasing, especially among those under 19.

However, there are still no plans to shut down schools in the province, acting deputy chief public health officer Dr. Jazz Atwal said in a press conference on Friday.