Members of the public must now wear non-medical face masks in all city-owned facilities and on public vehicle like transit buses after council passed a resolution to require them at their Oct. 19 meeting.
“Now that we’re seeing COVID cases in the north it’s deemed prudent to take these measures to protect public safety,” said city manager Anthony McInnis, noting that the city is also requiring employees to wear mask indoors.
The resolution was passed unanimously but several members of council said the city should go further and take steps so that face masks are required in all businesses within the city.
“I don’t think it goes far enough by any means,” said deputy mayor Les Ellsworth. “We need to take action as a city council. Can we not put a bylaw in place that mandates masks through the Thompson area?”
McInnis said a bylaw could be drafted but would require three readings over two council meetings before it could take effect.
Coun. Brian Lundmark asked if the city could get a face mask requirement in place faster by going through the Northern Regional Health Authority’s medical officer of health, saying that the rising number of cases in the city and the north makes it urgent.
“I know there are doctors that actually used the word scared today,” Lundmark said. “This isn’t going to get any better right now. We’re already at the tipping point here.”
McInnis said chief provincial public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin has the power to impose mask requirements.
“He’s not deemed it necessary to impose those yet though he has imposed them in other places such as Winnipeg,” McInnis said, noting that council could send a letter to him making such a request but that granting it would be at Roussin’s discretion.
Coun. Earl Colbourne also said that more needs to be done to limit the spread of COVID-19 in Thompson.
“It’s going crazy,” he said. “It’s going to get worse. I don’t know why people aren’t being stopped at roads coming in. That’s where it’s coming from. The bylaw's got to be brought in where we make masks compulsory in all public spaces in this town.”
Ellsworth asked if there are ways that council can speed up the process of passing a bylaw if it’s an emergency.
“There’s immediate things that can be done,” said McInnis. “We’ll be discussing some of those in camera after this meeting.”
