More than 17,000 phone numbers in the Côte Saint-Luc and the Côte-Des-Neiges areas will receive a robocall recorded by Mayor Mitchell Brownstein this week.
The automated message serves as a warning about the recent surge in coronavirus cases linked to variants that are considered to be more contagious.
It is also a reminder for residents who are eligible to get vaccinated as soon as possible through a recent pilot project set up by Montreal Public Health.
“It’s a great way to reach a lot of people,” says Brownstein. “Unfortunately it doesn’t reach everyone, but it reaches a lot of people.”
The robocalls will only be in French and English, but Brownstein says he’s confident 99 per cent of those receiving the call will understand the message.
“We have communication that goes out in other languages as well. It’s just not as easy to get it on a robocall,” added Brownstein.
Meantime, the Federation of Teachers of Jewish Schools (FTJS) said it’s doing what it can to encourage and inform its teachers to take advantage of the pilot project and to get vaccinated.
“We’ve informed them of the appropriate links they’re supposed to go to, and providing them with proper documentation,” says Mordechai Antel a spokesperson with the FTJS.
By Monday afternoon, Montreal Public Health confirmed to Global News more than 6,600 parents, children and teachers eligible to participate in the pilot project had already booked an appointment.