Hastings Prince Edward is in the low, green category for COVID-19 as of Wednesday and public heath officials are hoping area residents and businesses will help keep it that way.
They are discouraging travellers coming to the area and also keeping an eye on short-term accommodations.
Hastings Prince Edward Public Health rolled out the new strict regulations that accompany the area’s move back into the lowest COVID-19 level.
Speaking to the media on Tuesday, Medical Officer of Health Dr. Piotr Oglaza praised the hard work of all residents who he said made this possible.
Dr. Oglaza emphasized the new rules have additional restrictions, the main ones being that people must book for dine-in food service, and travelling to local accommodations is discouraged.
When questioned about people travelling from Toronto to this area, he indicated the plan is to reduce the number of those travellers.
Oglaza was asked about whether accommodation owners would be questioning travellers attempting the book from out of the area.
“They might be more restricted. They might be using this order as a way to justify why they’re not booking a particular individual.”
He was particularly questioned about such accommodation in Prince Edward County.
“However with the new variance and perhaps variances that are more readily transmittable, that might be changing. We’ll be watching that epidemiological situation very closely.”
Oglaza indicated so far there had not been a number of cases from short-term accommodation in Prince Edward County.
