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Cranbrook, BC (April 17, 2020) – With the first publicly reported case of COVID-19 in Cranbrook confirmed on Thursday, the City of Cranbrook first and foremost wishes good health and a full recovery to those directly affected.

As a community, it is important how we respond to this news.  Our best path forward is to remain calm and continue to adhere to the effective and widely recognized physical distancing guidelines that the health authorities have been advocating.  We must look at this as our opportunity to strengthen our commitment to avoid group gatherings of any size, practice good personal hygiene and stay home as much as possible or if you are sick. We strongly advocate for all our residents to take these requirements seriously and continue to follow the advice from the public health agencies in the days and weeks ahead.

For many weeks, our health officials have indicated that the virus is likely in all our communities, and that our behaviours should reflect that assumption.  If this was not our approach, or if our resolve has lessened as time and urgency waned, we should take this news as a message to strengthen our commitment.

The City of Cranbrook, along with our Regional Emergency Management Program partners, encourages all residents to focus on factual information and avoid speculation or rumours. The plan in this emergency has always been to flatten the curve and slow the spread. This is being done through social distancing, strong handwashing practices, and regular updates from our health authorities.Our plan has not changed, it has only become clearer that we must all work together if we are going to change the result.

For official, fact based information about our current situation, or how best to care for yourself and your family, visit us at www.cranbrook.ca/residents/covid-19-updates-information/ or the Regional District of East Kootenay at https://www.rdek.bc.ca/departments/emergencyservices/emergencyinfo/.

Our community will get through this. We need to stick together and show compassion if we are to do that well. Each of us is ‘front line’ in this fight, and we must do everything we can to protect ourselves, each other and our community.