Northern Manitoba transportation companies are taking steps to try to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus, also known as COVID-19.
Calm Air has developed a pre-boarding screening questionnaire that asks potential passengers if they have travelled outside of Canada in the past 14 days, if they have been in close contact with someone who has and is now showing possible symptoms of COVID-19 such as fever, coughing or shortness of breath or if they themselves have experienced such symptoms. Anyone who has is being asked not to travel on Calm Air and to return home and contact a health care professional for instructions on how to make arrangements for medical assessment.
Perimeter Aviation, owned by the same parent company as Calm Air, says it has implemented additional sanitation procedures for its aircraft and public areas to ensure they meet or exceed Public Health Agency of Canada guidelines, including thoroughly wiping down and disinfecting airport counters, aircraft seats, tray tables, arm rests and bathrooms. The airline is providing hand sanitizer and disinfecting wipes on its planes and at its check-in counters and has removed all non-essential reading material from the pockets on the back of plane seats.
Mahihkan Bus Lines says it has always maintained its buses and equipment with commercial-grade cleaners and is disinfecting high-touch areas in its buses nightly, as well as regularly deep-cleaning and wiping down surfaces.
“During the COVID-19 outbreak, and always, we want to ensure out passengers that we have always taken necessary steps to ensure cleanliness and disinfectant of our buses,” they said in a notice posted on Facebook.
NCN Thompson Bus said in a March 17 Facebook post that it has been detailing its buses extensively before and after every trip and that passengers must fill in a pre-screening form before checking in for their trips.
