Tyler Biggs
Due to growing concerns of the COVID-19 virus, Humber College has cancelled all non-essential trips to heavily effected regions until the end of June.
The announcement comes after the latest discovery of three new cases of coronavirus in Ontario. This brings the total number of cases in the province to 26 with 51 confirmed or presumed in Canada.
Jacqueline Anderson, Humber’s Associate Director of Health and Counselling, declined on Friday to comment to Humber News on the trip cancellation move but did suggest that people follow internal college media to learn of any further development.
“I cannot comment on the future of other trips at this time,” said Anderson.
“Any concerns, though, and someone can go to [the college’s news portal] communique,” she said.
“There are currently no identified cases in the Humber or U of Guelph-Humber community,” Anderson said.
The Government of Canada has been categorizing regions affected by COVID-19 by level and are encouraging special practice when travelling to a certain countries with high cases of the virus.
“The risk to Canadian travellers abroad is generally low but will vary depending on the destination. The Public Health Agency of Canada is closely monitoring the spread of COVID-19 in other countries,” the government’s website says.
The World Health Organization recently declared the virus to be an international health emergency but the risk to Canadians is still low.
As of March 4, China, Iran, Italy, Japan and South Korea had been deemed either a medium-high risk to public health for Canadian travellers.
However, steps can still be taken to reduce exposure and keep yourself safe.
Health experts recommend washing your hands frequently, covering when you cough and staying home when ill to combat the spread of infectious diseases.
Below is what you need to know about COVID-19:
Humber says it will be doing its part to help keep students healthy by increasing cleaning frequently touched areas, hospital-grade hand sanitizers and electrostatic fogging machines twice a week using a device that seals surfaces so that germs are unable to attach to them.
“We are following (the) government of Canada’s travel advisories,” said media relations specialist Nadia Araujo. “We may need to cancel trips to other countries, depending on how the situation evolves.”
For further questions or concerns regarding the COVID-19 virus, students and faculty should visit the Ontario Ministry of Health website or Toronto’s Public Health website.