Lethbridge Mayor Chris Spearman with a plea to residents this week to listen to what health officials are saying and stay home.
During a local update on COVID-19 on Monday, the Mayor says this public health crisis could last into the summer and beyond.
Spearman says to those people who are not taking this pandemic seriously, you are risking others in the community, especially those who are most vulnerable. “We’re going to do better as a community throughout this crisis if people begin taking preventative steps right now.”
Spearman says these measures are essential if we want to slow the spread of coronavirus in Lethbridge.
“The next few weeks are going to be crucial,” says Spearman. “How we are going to be impacted depends on how each and everyone us responds.”
The Mayor says if you’ve just returned home from the U.S. or any other country you should be self-isolating at home for 14 days. “You shouldn’t be at the grocery store or at the bank or anywhere you can come into contact with others.”
Spearman says if you are going outdoors to please stay a health distance away from others (approx. two metres or six feet). He notes these preventative measures are absolutely essential for everyone if we are to slow the spread of this disease in Lethbridge and southern Alberta.
As of Monday, southern Alberta had 8 confirmed cases of coronavirus. Five of those are in Lethbridge, two in Medicine hat, and one in the MD of Taber.