Old Crow under isolation order until Christmas Eve, says chief

Residents of Old Crow will be subject to local public healthrestrictions until at least Christmas Eve after multiple COVID-19 infections were detected in the community.

The Vuntut Gwitchin Government passed additional measures last Thursday, requiring all residents to self-isolate and stay inside their homes for 14 days.

The resolution approved by council took effect last Friday and also stipulates thateach residence is allowed to form a social bubble with one other household, masks need to be worn in public spaces, and people are able to go on the land for traditional purposes as long as they follow the rules.

As well, non-essential travel to and from the community has been barred.

"We could see this prolonged, which very well could be the case, out of an abundance of caution," said Chief Dana Tizya-Tramm of the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation.

According to the emergency order, those who don't comply could face a $5,000 fine, six months in jail or both.

"We don't want to charge people. That's not what this is about. This is about education. This is about people making the right choices and helping to inform that," Tizya-Tramm said.

"But I think from what I've observed so far, and the level of commitment [from]the volunteers and people coming forward through this ... I do think we're going to pull through this OK."

Since the first infections were reported, trained staff have been going door-to-door applying rapid antigen tests, he said.

This week, Tizya-Tramm is expecting a mobile clinic to arrive with vaccine boosters and more rapid tests.

He said as of Tuesday, there were five active cases confirmed through PCR testing and nine suspected cases that came from rapid testing.

As residents dig in for the isolation period, Tizya-Tramm said thousands of pounds of goods are being airlifted into the community like cleaning supplies, food, even Christmas items.

"We're trying to supply each household in the community everything that they would need for a substantial self-isolation period," he said.

"So although there is a lot of concern throughout the community, luckily and because of the high vaccination rate, we haven't had a single critical case where an individual has had to be medevaced."