2 teachers test positive for COVID-19 after exercising together at school

By News Staff

Two teachers in Peel Region have tested positive for COVID-19 after violating several public health protocols in the region, one of them with the U.K. variant of the virus.

The Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board confirms the teachers both tested positive after using the school to exercise without wearing a mask for at least some of the time they were there. The board did not name the school in question, citing privacy concerns.

Even though schools in Toronto, York and Peel are closed for in-person learning, the board says teachers are allowed into schools to teach remotely in order to access resources such as SMART boards, AV and other technology not available to them at home or to teach special-needs students.

There was no indication from the board that the teachers came into contact with any students.

However, the board says the use of school gyms and weight rooms for recreational purposes remains strictly off-limits and the ban was recently reinforced to all principals in early January.

“I can confirm that the two teachers were exercising together and that, at least for a portion of the time, they were not wearing masks which was, and remains a mandatory requirement of all employees while in Board facilities,” read a statement emailed to CityNews.

The board did not say if the teachers are facing any further discipline at this time.

The Peel public health unit confirmed they investigated an “outbreak” involving two school staff members at the unidentified school.

“One case has been confirmed as B.1.1.7 (UK) variant,” said the health unit in a statement. “No other cases occurred from this outbreak, and therefore the risk remains low.”

As of Wednesday, Ontario has confirmed 228 cases of the UK variant with 23 of them in Peel Region.

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