Of the nine new regional cases reported by the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit on Thursday, five of them were in their 20s or 30s. Four of those were community-acquired, with one cause still under investigation.
The news doesn’t surprise officials from Barrie Police Service, as most of the calls they say they’ve received reporting large groups congregating across the city have been of groups within the 20-to-35 age bracket.
“We have received some inquiries with respect to that over the past couple of days,” said communications co-ordinator Peter Leon. “The calls come in, we respond, educate and move on accordingly.
"The majority have been under that age group," he added.
Leon said, so far, Barrie police have focused primarily on education when responding to these types of calls and no fines or charges have yet been laid.
Emergency orders now in place from the province to address the COVID-19 outbreak include the closure of non-essential businesses, prohibiting organized public events and social gatherings of more than five people and stopping price gouging on necessary goods such as disinfectant products. Failing to comply with any of these emergency orders is an offence under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act (EMCPA) and so is the failure to identify oneself accurately.
Failing to correctly identify oneself carries a fine of $750 or $1,000 for obstructing any person in exercising a power if a provincial offences officer issues a ticket. Failure to comply with an emergency order could also carry punishments of up to one-year imprisonment or a fine of up to $100,000 for an individual, $500,000 for a director of a corporation, or $10,000,000 for a corporation.
These penalties apply in addition to the penalties for breaching other emergency orders.
Leon said that on Wednesday, Barrie police responded to about six calls of people congregating in large groups.
“I think it shows how things are getting ramped up here a little bit. This is a serious thing,” said Leon. “Some people, from what we’re hearing and observing, aren’t taking it seriously.”
Ultimately, Leon says it comes down to the safety of the community.
“Even if you get a group of people together in a parking lot and they’re spaced out, there’s still that possibility of transmission to take place,” he said. “Bringing people together socially in open settings isn’t the answer.”
When asked what the most common reasons are for congregating in large groups despite the provincial emergency order being in place, Leon says Barrie police are finding people just aren’t up to date on the news.
“I think part of the problem is things are evolving so quickly. People aren’t necessarily aware of the changes that have been made,” said Leon.
However, it’s getting to a point where excuses are wearing thin.
“The situation is becoming more and more serious as each day passes,” said Leon. “The darkest days are yet to come.”
While Central Region OPP representatives were also contacted for this story, they indicated they do not keep track of or report demographics of individuals they interact with when responding to calls.
“People are mostly adhering to the warnings,” said OPP Central Region media liaison Jason Folz. “When our people are dispatched, we haven’t had any charges yet, so that should tell you our public education piece is working.”
