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School COVID exposures remain low on North Shore

COVID case reported in kids' 'Ninja' class in West Van
Jane Seyd
Jane Seyd
kidsinclass
After a series of school "clusters" earlier this fall, COVID cases have dropped off in North Shore schools.FatCamera / Getty Images

Cases of COVID-19 in North Shore schools continue to remain low compared to last year at this time.

The most recent notification of a COVID case in school was sent to parents of a Grade 3/4 class at Ecole Cedardale in West Vancouver. The exposure happened Oct. 26 – 28.

Vancouver Coast Health told parents there was no evidence of transmission to other students.

Around the same time, the District of West Vancouver advised families whose children attended an intermediate “Ninja” martial arts class on Oct. 28 that one of the children in the class tested positive for COVID. The child was not wearing a mask in the class, although many other children were, according to the district.

People participating in a physical activity or sport are not required to wear a mask while exercising.

Earlier this fall, three North Vancouver schools – including Ecole Andre-Piolat French school and Capilano and Upper Lynn elementary schools – were hit with clusters of COVID-19 cases among students.

West Vancouver has only reported one previous school exposure, at Ecole Pauline Johnson, in September.

The situation is a marked improvement over last year, when numerous exposures were regularly being reported in both elementary and secondary schools and two private sports clubs were forced to temporarily close over COVID-19 exposures.

This year, COVID vaccination rates are high among both adults and teens on the North Shore.

Canada has still not yet approved vaccines for children under 12, although that is expected soon. There are about 500,000 children under 12 in the province.

In early October, Pfizer submitted initial trial data for the use of its COVID-19 vaccine in children aged 5-11 to Health Canada.

Among 12-17 year olds in North and West Vancouver, between 86 and 90 per cent are fully vaccinated. So far, there have not been any exposure notices issued for high schools on the North Shore.

According to B.C.’s Centre for Disease Control, during the first five weeks of school there were 1,388 school exposures linked to 510 in schools. COVID-19 case rates among children and teens peaked in the last week of September, according to the BC CDC and have fallen sharply since then.