Nunavik daycares set to open next week

Childcare centres are set to re-open across Nunavik next week, as the Kativik Regional Government begins its next phase of ending COVID-19-related closures and lifting restrictions across the region.

Nunavik’s 19 childcare centres “will reopen at 100 per cent” on June 15, the KRG said.

“All children registered in childcare centers prior to their closure will be re-admitted,” the regional government said in a June 9 news release.

Daycares throughout the region closed on March 13 as part of Quebec-wide measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Although the region saw 16 infections through March and April, it has been COVID-19-free since May 5, prompting Nunavik’s Regional Emergency Advisory Committee to begin to relax certain measures.

The committee starting lifting restrictions on May 29, starting with the re-opening of inter-community travel, and commercial flights are now set to begin on June 18.

Nunavik families with school-aged children will also get some relief this summer; the KRG will also re-open day camps throughout the region on June 22. The camps will offer recreational activities for children aged six to 12 over the summer months.

The regional government has yet to announce any safety measures required for staff or children at both childcare centres or day camps once they re-open.

Similarly, the Government of Nunavut gave the green light to its daycare centres to re-open, starting on June 1. The openings are staggered throughout the territory, however; so far, 16 facilities have been permitted to open, while another four are set to open this week and next.

Keeping sealift activities safe

Nunavik officials are also preparing the region’s ports for the upcoming sealift season. Among the new measures announced on June 9, the KRG is now authorizing guidelines for sealift operation and fuel transportation to reduce the potential transmission of the virus.

The KRG said it plans to hire and oversee temporary harbour masters in each community to ensure sealift crews and community members do not interact. The regional government will also build protective barriers around marine infrastructure in each village, to keep sealift operations separate from the community.

Finally, the KRG will now allow Nunavik Parks and outfitters in the region to do maintenance and renovations using workers from the region, to prepare for the possibility of a limited re-opening of the region’s parks later this summer. Currently, parks remain closed to tourism.

With files from Emma Tranter