Canadian Nuclear Laboratories' Chalk River site
Two cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed at the Chalk River Laboratories campus. Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) says the first positive case was confirmed on Saturday (October 24th). The second case confirmed today establishes what is considered a suspected outbreak according to local health officials in Renfrew County.
While the contact tracing process is underway by the Renfrew County and District Health Unit, CNL is treating this second case as a workplace transmission out of an abundance of caution.
All employees who work in the affected work areas have been sent home, and a full disinfection of the spaces is being administered. The return to work of affected staff will be carefully arranged when health experts deem it is safe to do so.
Since the pandemic began, CNL has enacted workplace measures to mitigate the risk of transmission of COVID-19 at its sites across Canada and to protect the health and safety of its workers, contractors and visitors. In addition to mandatory face masks, physical distancing requirements, room capacity limits and increased sanitation measures, CNL has shifted a significant segment of its workforce to remote operations. CNL also maintains a mandatory daily screening process in order to be granted access to the site. CNL will continue to review and update its COVID-19 countermeasures to protect the health and safety of its employees and the communities in which they live.