Coronavirus: City of Winnipeg shutting down pools, libraries

The City of Winnipeg has announced that all city-owned and operated recreation centres, pools and libraries will be closed to the public beginning Monday, March 16 in an effort to quell the tide of the coronavirus outbreak.

The closures will remain in effect until further notice.

Leisure Guide programming is also being put on hold until further notice. Registration for programming was scheduled to take place on Tuesday but has since been postponed.

In addition, the city will be rescheduling all city-run programs to align with the provincial government’s school closure measures that begin March 23.

“In order to meet the budget timelines required by law under the Winnipeg Charter, I have also worked with Committee Chairs to reschedule meetings accordingly,” said Mayor Brian Bowman.

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Most notably, the council meeting for considering the city’s 2020 budget originally scheduled for March 25 has been moved up to Friday, March 20.

Any changes to the city’s April meeting scheduled will be considered at the regularly scheduled Executive Policy Committee meeting on Tuesday.

WATCH: Jay Shaw from Winnipeg’s Emergency Measures Centre talks about COVID-19 response

0:42 Jay Shaw from Winnipeg’s Emergency Measures Centre talks about COVID-19 response

Concerned about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:

Health officials say the risk is very low for Canadians.

Symptoms can include fever, cough and difficulty breathing – very similar to a cold or flu. Some people can develop a more severe illness. People most at risk of this include older adults and people with severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease.

To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent handwashing and coughing into your sleeve. And if you get sick, stay at home.

For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, click here.