Students and staff at Toronto ESL centre may have been exposed to individual with COVID-19

Person with COVID-19 attended Toronto ESL centre Students at a Toronto centre that provides language instruction to newcomers may have been exposed to someone with the COVID-19 virus.

TORONTO — Staff and students at a midtown centre that provides language instruction to newcomers to Canada may have been exposed to someone with the COVID-19 virus.

Toronto Public Health sent out a letter to those enrolled at the ESL and LINC Centre located at 90 Eglinton Avenue East on Thursday, warning them that they “may have been exposed to someone who has the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID – 19).”

The letter goes on to say that anyone from the centre who develops symptoms prior to March 11 should follow self-isolation guidelines. It also says that anyone who does seek medical treatment should call their healthcare provider first, so they can take necessary precautions.

The centre is operated by the Toronto Catholic District School Board.

“This individual last attended the facility on Feb. 25 and did not have symptoms on that day,” the letter reads. “Coronaviruses are spread mainly from person to person between people who are in close contact with one another. People are thought to be most contagious when they are most symptomatic.”

The warning from Toronto Public Health comes after officials confirmed two new positive cases of COVID-19 in Toronto on Friday, the seventh and eighth cases in Ontario.

In a statement provided to CP24, Associate Medical Officer of Health Dr. Herveen Sachdeva said that Toronto Public Health routinely investigates reports of infectious diseases and assess all exposures.

Sachdeva said that Toronto Public Health then contacts people directly if there is a potential risk related to an exposure, as was the case at the midtown ESL and LINC Centre.

“We do this to provide education, further instructions and reduce the potential of virus spread,” she said.