Walpole Island First Nation is taking steps to limit non-resident traffic and non-essential visitors to their community.
They will also be postponing their upcoming election.
In a live video post on Monday, March 31, Band Councillor Steve Tooshkenig also confirmed there are still no confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Walpole Island.
“However, cases in Lambton County, Chatham-Kent and Windsor-Essex continue to rise,” Tooshkenig said.
“Our hearts and our thoughts go out to our neighbouring communities and we wish a speedy recovery to all those affected.”
Tooshkenig said many community members have expressed their concern about non-resident traffic and non-essential visitors to the community.
“(Monday) morning, Chief and Council, had a teleconference to discuss additional measures to protect our community and will be implementing measures in the coming days to limit non-residents and non-essential traffic into our community of Bkejwanong,” Tooshkenig said.
More specifics were set to be shared on Wednesday, April 1.
“After the Emergency Operations Control Group has a chance to implement a plan to ensure the proper safety protocols are put in place,” Tooshkenig said.
All events and gatherings in the community remain cancelled until further notice, this includes the upcoming nominations and elections, Tooshkenig added.
“They are just not possible at this time,” he said.
“We have received recommendations from Indigenous Services Canada regarding the postponement of the election to ensure continued safety. We’ll move forward with the election timelines as soon as it’s safe to do so.”
He said all essential employees on Walpole Island remain available by phone.
Walpole Island First Nation Council has been providing daily video updates on their Facebook page, which you can find, here.
For more information, visit their website, here: http://walpoleislandfirstnation.ca/
