The chief of Constance Lake First Nation says there will be no extreme emergency measures placed in the community due to COVID-19 or Blastomycosis. Ramona Sutherland says the council is doing everything to protect the community members and feels that a lockdown or evacuation would cause more stress.
“We are going to protect the community by not having the lockdown cause of blasto that’s too much anxiety,” she said. “There are some people that still think we should evacuate and that’s not the case right now. We are not considering evacuating.”
Sutherland says she is hoping to speak with Notre Dame Hospital doctors regarding the treatment of the residents. She’s learned that the hospital won’t be testing for COVID-19 symptoms, but adds that it’s different for her community.
“And so we have to make sure that our community residents are not turned away from the hospital when they go in for COVID symptoms because they could very easily be blasto,” she said.
She adds that any visitors to the community must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and register for contact tracing.
