ANTIGONISH: Both the mayor of the Town of Antigonish and the Warden of the Municipality of the County of Antigonish say despite having a local outbreak, it’s not time to point fingers at StFX University.
Mayor Laurie Boucher told The Reporter her initial reaction to the COVID-19 outbreak reported across Antigonish was that the virus was here, despite working very hard over the past 20 months to avoid this.
“Nevertheless it’s here now, and we all have to work together to make sure it stays as contained as possible,” Boucher said. “This variant is a lot different; it travels a lot more quickly and is much more contagious. The community that we live in is very special and we support one another.”
She advised Nova Scotia Public Health came into the community immediately, and started to control the situation. The mayor said Antigonish “wouldn’t be able to do this as well as it’s going” without them and Dr. Robert Strang’s office.
Now amidst the outbreak, both the town and county have increased their dialogue with StFX.
“We were doing once a week there for a while, and everything was going well, so we went once a month,” Boucher said. “Now, we’re back to actually three times a week. They’re taking their direction from Dr. Strang; they’re dealing with parents and student that have tested positive.”
For the students who’re isolating in the community, the mayor advised they’re being supported once again through the Neighbours Helping Neighbours program.
“The public have stepped up and brought them homemade soup and baked goods,” Boucher said. “Definitely seeing some Antigonish care and concern there.”
The mayor would not say if she supports the university’s decision to host in-person X-Ring festivities earlier this month yet.
“Because if you ask me right now, I’m going to say no, but if you had of asked me and everything went well, I would have said yes; hindsight is 20-20,” Boucher said. “Now’s not the time to point fingers, the province is doing an active investigation right now, so let’s put our energy into staying well and let’s put our energy into making sure we support our neighbours.”
Warden Owen McCarron told The Reporter following the county’s regular monthly council meeting on Dec. 15, that he agreed with Boucher.
“From what I’ve learned thorough this whole piece, over the 20 months, the university did an excellent job in working their way through each segment of COVID; and it would appear that everything they were doing was okay with public health,” McCarron said. “I guess we all have the luxury of hindsight, but I didn’t hear anybody throughout the community in the lead up, or all fall, expressing any concern. This was just sort of that perfect storm of things happening.”
He suggested there will be lots of time after the fact to have the lessons learned from this and he’s sure there will be lots of discussion surrounding the matter as they move forward.
“For me, this is not the time to point fingers or to level blame,” McCarron said. “It’s just about making sure we do our part to try to get our community to the other side.”
While we’re in the middle of the fire storm and it seems as though everyone is fairly disappointed, the warden said it’s important to get through it and remain supportive during this time of year.
“The timing of the outbreak probably couldn’t be worse, as we’re leading into the Christmas season,” McCarron said. “For small businesses, retail and service, they’re feeling and will feel the impact significantly.”
This outbreak, is a bit different, he said, than the first wave of COVID, when there were more unknowns.
“But the community rallied behind that outbreak, and we were a safe community for 20 months,” McCarron said. “Of course for this unfortunate situation to happen is tough; there’s lots of anxiety, there’s anger, people are scared, there’s a range of emotions that are happening, and that’s understandable.”
The warden explained he has talked to a number of people who tested positive during the recent outbreak, and they’re experiencing flu-like symptoms, but nothing more.
“So in our area, where there are no hospitalizations, to date, than that’s somewhat reassuring,” McCarron said. “And the fact that it’s moving quickly, it tells us the need to follow the public health protocols.”
In a joint statement to the Antigonish community released on Dec. 16, the mayor and warden advised with the cases in their community being the highest they have seen in months, they are reassured that the local health care system is in a better position and has the resources to protect those who are vulnerable.
“The impacts of COVID-19 have never felt this close to home before and the anxiety and anger many of you are feeling is normal,” the release read. “This collective feeling of uncertainty is reminiscent of the first few months of COVID-19 when it first started to affect how we moved and interacted with one another in the community.”
They advised the best way to present the spread is to get tested and highlighted PCR tests remain available at the Antigonish COVID-19 Testing Centre. They also emphasized the best defence against COVID-19 is to get vaccinated.
“Now is the time to step up and support our neighbours,” the release said. “Offer kindness and compassion to others as we move into the holiday season under these challenging circumstances and shop local to support the businesses that make Antigonish such a vibrant community.”