THUNDER BAY -- A petition has been launched in an effort to convince the province to name the Thunder Bay public health unit as a COVID-19 hot spot
The designation would allow the province to include the district in its prioritization plan for doling out vaccine supply.
Thunder Bay has been one of the hardest hit regions in the province of late, with 412 active cases. The province has named 13 other public health units as hot spots, including Durham, Halton, Hamilton, Niagara, Ottawa, Peel, Simcoe, Muskoka, Waterloo, Wellington, Dufferin, Guelph, Windsor, Essex, York, Toronto and South West.
As a result, they're eligible for additional government support.
"These regions may also be placed on the expedited vaccine procurement schedule,' reads a post on the Thunder Bay group's Change.org petition.
'Over the past several weeks, Thunder Bay, ON has had the highest number of new COVID-19 cases in the province per population of one hundred thousand.
"The number of people who have been hospitalized due to COVID-19 and who are on ventilators has risen sharply. In addition, elective medical procedures at the Regional hospital have been halted, and hospital occupancy is at a critically high level."
Thunder Bay moved from Red-Control to Grey-Lockdown on March 1, after re-entering the province's colour-coded framework last month.
The group says the numbers speak for themselves. Thunder Bay currently has 412 active cases and has added 516 in the first 10 days of March, following a February that saw a record 645 cases. On Wednesday Dr. Janet DeMille, medical officer of health at the Thunder Bay District Health Unit, recommended students continue learning from home for another two weeks, through March 28.
The district needs all the help it can get, the petitioners say.
"Given the sharp rise in the number of COVID-19 cases in our community, the number of COVID-related deaths, the critical number of patients in the Regional hospital, and the seriousness and extent of community spread, we the undersigned, petition the Ontario government to immediately designate the Thunder Bay District as an Ontario COVID-19 hotspot, such that it may be prioritized to receive supports and vaccinations necessary to save lives, keep people safe, bolster small businesses, reopen schools, and resume some semblance of normalcy."
The province on Wednesday announced three public health districts would start distributing the AstraZeneca vaccine through 325 pharmacies, while several more would begin distribution through family doctors. Thunder Bay was not on either list.
About 1,800 people have signed the online petition as of Thursday morning, including Louise Wright.
"Thunder Bay is a hot spot and I care about the health of my community," she wrote after signing the petition.
Kristie Otway is concerned about the impact on the city's health-care facilities.
"We are in a crisis at our hospital," Otway said.
