O'Connor Township

Country Living at its Best

Phone: 807-476-1451
Email: twpoconn@tbaytel.net

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COVID – 19

TBDHU  – COVID-19 VACCINATION CLINIC, WHITEFISH VALLEY PUBLIC SCHOOL

See Vaccine Clinic Flyer -_Whitefish Valley poster for details on this clinic and other available COVID-19 clinics.

TBDHU Launches Immunization Campaign for 5 to 11 Year-Olds (November 22, 2021)

With the recent approval of the paediatric Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine by Health Canada and the arrival of supply into Canada, the Thunder Bay District Health Unit (TBDHU) is launching its immunization campaign for 5 to 11 year olds.

To read more or to find out how you can book an appointment, click on the TBDHU Media Release – Ages 5 to 11.

THUNDER BAY DISTRICT HEALTH UNIT – INCREASED ELIGIBILITY FOR ACCELERATED SECOND DOSES OF COVID-19 VACCINE AND INTERCHANGEABILITY OF PFIZER AND MODERNA VACCINES

On Thursday June 17, 2021, the Province announced the accelerated rollout of second dose eligibility for COVID-19 vaccines.  As of the morning of Monday June 21, individuals who received their first dose of an mRNA vaccine (Pfizer or Moderna) on or before May 9th are eligible to book an appointment for a second dose.

To read more, click on the TBDHU Media Release – Accelerated Second Doses.

THUNDER BAY DISTRICT HEALTH UNIT – TRAVEL GUIDANCE

As the province reopens and summer arrives, the TBDHU recognizes that people will want to travel.

Please be mindful that COVID-19 is still with us and that different areas of the province and the country can have different levels of the virus. At this time, the safest option is still to stay in the area of your home community or in the region. To stay safe wherever you are, continue to follow recommended public health measures and get both doses of your COVID-19 vaccine as soon as you are able.

To read more, click on the TBDHU Media Release – Travel Guidance.

ONTARIO RELEASES THREE-STEP ROADMAP TO SAFELY REOPEN THE PROVINCE

The Ontario government, in consultation with the Chief Medical Officer of Health, has released its Roadmap to Reopen, a three-step plan to safely and cautiously reopen the province and gradually lift public health measures based on the provincewide vaccination rate and improvements in key public health and health care indicators. In response to recent improvements to these indicators, Ontario will allow more outdoor recreational amenities to reopen, with restrictions in place, effective May 22, 2021 at 12:01 a.m.

ONTARIO MOVES SCHOOLS TO REMOTE LEARNING FOLLOWING SPRING BREAK

Continued Rise in COVID-19 Cases Demands Shift to Protect Students and Staff and Slow Community Spread.

The Ontario government, in consultation with the Chief Medical Officer of Health, has made the difficult decision to move elementary and secondary schools to remote learning following the April break. This move has been made in response to the rapid increase in COVID-19 cases, the increasing risks posed to the public by COVID-19 variants, and the massive spike in hospital admissions.

To read more, please visit Ontario-moves-schools-to-remote-learning-following-spring-break.

THUNDER BAY DISTRICT HEALTH UNIT – RESUMPTION OF IN PERSON LEARNING

With the improvement in number and rate of COVID-19 cases in recent weeks, the Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Janet DeMille, is not extending the suspension of in-person learning that school boards in Thunder Bay and surrounding communities were directed to implement through her letter of instruction issued under regulations of the Reopening Ontario Act.

To read more, click on the TBDHU Media Release -School Reopening.

THUNDER BAY DISTRICT HEALTH UNIT – PROVINCE WIDE STAY AT HOME ORDER

Starting Thursday, April 8, 2021, the Government of Ontario announced a Province Wide Stay Home Order to control the spread of COVID-19, that applies to the entire Thunder Bay District Health Unit (TBDHU) catchment area. Individuals are being asked to stay home, unless it is for essential reasons.

To read more, click on the TBDHU Media Release – Provincewide Stay Home Order.

THUNDER BAY DISTRICT HEALTH UNIT – PROVINCE WIDE SHUTDOWN

The Thunder Bay District Health Unit (TBDHU) will be in a shutdown, starting Saturday April 3, 2021, at 12:01 a.m., for at least 4 weeks as part of the Government of Ontario Province Wide Emergency Brake Shutdown that was announced today.
This Provincewide Shutdown means the TBDHU catchment area will experience time-limited public health and workplace safety measures to control the spread of COVID-19.
In addition to the general public health measures, there are some new and specific requirements that apply under the Province Wide Shutdown.  All measures are also detailed in Ontario Regulation 82/20: Rules for Areas in Stage 1, Schedules 1 to 5 under the Reopening Ontario (A Flexible Response to COVID-19) Act.
The current COVID-19 Response Framework: Keeping Ontario Safe and Open, will be paused when the provincewide emergency brake comes into effect. The impacts of these time-limited measures will be evaluated throughout the next four weeks to determine if it is safe to lift any restrictions or if they need to be extended.
Visit the TBDHU Website for more information or contact TBDHU at (807) 625-5900 or toll-free: 1-888-294-6630.

 

ONTARIO IMPLEMENTS PROVINCEWIDE EMERGENCY BRAKE

The Ontario government, in consultation with the Chief Medical Officer of Health and other health experts, is imposing a Provincewide Emergency Brake as a result of an alarming surge  in case numbers and COVID-19 hospitalizations across the province. The provincewide emergency brake will be effective Saturday, April 3, 2021, at 12:01 a.m. and the government intends to keep this in place for at least four weeks.

 

THIS SPRING BREAK – DO YOUR PART AND STOP THE SURGE

In many parts of northern Ontario, COVID-19 infection rates have been at some of the highest levels
since the pandemic began. COVID-19 activity is rising again across the province, and the rapid spread of
variants of concern (VOCs) is causing aggressive outbreaks, and in some cases, more severe illness, even
in younger people.

As we approach the Easter holiday and spring break, the northern Medical Officers of Health are asking
all community members in northern Ontario to work together to prevent another surge in COVID-19.

To read more, click on the TBDHU Media Release – Spring Break and Easter Message.

 

MEDICAL OFFICER OF HEALTH EXTENDS SUSPENSION OF IN-PERSON LEARNING

Due to the significant number of cases of COVID-19 in Thunder Bay, the Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Janet DeMille, is directing schools in the City of Thunder Bay and surrounding areas to extend the suspension of in-person learning until March 29, 2021. The need for further extension will be considered closer to that time. This direction was communicated to the school boards through a Letter of Instruction, issued under regulations of the Reopening of Ontario Act, 2020.

To read more, click on TBDHU Media Release -School Closures

 

COVID-19 UPDATE FROM DR. JANET DEMILLE, MEDICAL OFFICER OF HEALTH

Posted on March 9, 2021

DATE: March 8, 2021

THUNDER BAY & DISTRICT – Dr. Janet DeMille, Medical Officer of Health of The Thunder Bay District Health Unit (TBDHU) provided an update on the current COVID-19 Situation via video which can be seen on the TBDHU Facebook or YouTube pages.

LOCATION:

https://www.facebook.com/TBDHealthUnit/
or
https://youtu.be/FuxXSAEuUQE

 

THUNDER BAY DISTRICT HEALTH UNIT – COVID VACCINE 85 PLUS

The Thunder Bay District Health Unit (TBDHU) is pleased to announce that delivery and administration of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to older adults will start Wednesday, March 3, 2021, in Thunder Bay. The Ontario’s vaccination plan includes adults 80 years of age and older as one of the priority groups in the first phase. TBDHU will begin this week with vaccinating those aged 85 and older, and will move to include those 80-84 years of age in the coming weeks.  To read more, click on TBDHU Media Release – COVID Vaccine 85 plus.

 

THUNDER BAY DISTRICT HEALTH UNIT – VACCINE ROLLOUT

The Thunder Bay District Health Unit (TBDHU) is actively rolling-out the COVID-19 vaccination program in the TBDHU area. This has been in partnership with the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre (TBRHSC) and many other health care, Indigenous and community partners both in Thunder Bay and District communities. As per provincial direction, the full roll-out will take place in three phases over the coming months and through to the fall. During this time, everybody who wants the COVID-19 vaccine will be able to receive it.  To read more, please click on the TBDHU Media Release – Vaccine Rollout.

 

THUNDER BAY DISTRICT HEALTH UNIT – GREY ZONE

The Government of Ontario announced that the Thunder Bay District Health Unit (TBDHU) will be moving into the “Grey – Lockdown” zone of the provincial COVID-19 Response Framework: Keeping Ontario Safe and Open.  Additional public health measures will further help control the spread of COVID-19 in the TBDHU area.  This move comes into effect on Monday, March 1, 2021, at 12:01 a.m. To read more, click on the TBDHU Media Release – Provincial Framework – Grey

 

COVID-19  – Tuesday, November 16, 2020 Update from Dr. Janet DeMille

Today Dr. DeMille provided a community update on the current COVID-19 situation in our area via video that is published in the following links below:

https://www.facebook.com/TBDHealthUnit/videos/784839392359838

COVID-19 Energy Assistance Program: Applications Begin July 13

The Government of Ontario is making $9 million available to support residential customers struggling to pay their energy bills because of COVID-19. The COVID-19 Energy Assistance Program (CEAP) provides a one-time, on-bill credit to eligible residential electricity and natural gas customers to help them catch up on their energy bills and resume regular payments.

Electricity and natural gas utilities and unit sub-meter providers (USMPs) will begin accepting applications for CEAP on July 13, 2020, delivering the program in accordance with rules laid out by the OEB. CEAP funding is limited, with utilities and USMPs expected to process applications in the order in which they are received. Please note, submitting an application does not guarantee funding. To apply for CEAP funding, customers should contact their utility or USMP directly.

For more information, including eligibility requirements and on-bill credit amounts, visit oeb.ca/ceap.

 

Please see links below for COVID-19 Updates;

The Township of O’Connor would like to encourage all residents to read and follow the information from trusted sources provided below.  As the world faces the COVID-19 pandemic, we strongly urge people not to panic, but rather take proper precautions given by the World Health Organization (WHO), Thunder Bay District Health Unit, Public Health Agency of Canada,  Provincial and Federal Governments to prevent and protect you and your families from exposure to the virus.  Please see websites below.

Help for Those in Need during COVID-19 Pandemic

Please call the Township office at 476-1451 if you are self-isolating or practicing social distancing and are not able or not wanting to go out.  The Township has a list of wonderful residents of the Township that have offered to help those in need.  If you wish to add your name to the list of volunteers, call and we will add your name.  Neighbours helping neighbours.  Truly country living at its best!

Other resources are:

  • 211 – Phone or google 211 and ask or use their search feature to discover a list of service providers in the Thunder Bay area.
  • St. John’s Ambulance, 345-1712 – Contact for information regarding volunteer opportunities and services.
  • Pharmacies – Contact your pharmacy to inquire if they provide prescription delivery, or to have it prepared in advance for quick pick-up (and possibly if there are groceries they can add to the list).
  • Driving Miss Daisy, 630-0890 – Delivery service for groceries or prescriptions.  Call for more information.
  • Superstore – Shop online and pick up your groceries without entering the store.  See website at https://www.realcanadiansuperstore.ca/
  • Walmart – Shop online and pick up your groceries at Customer Service.  See website at www.walmart.ca