14 school boards across Montreal close today amidst coronavirus concerns

14 school boards across the Montreal area are closing on Friday in response to the Quebec government’s recommended reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to provincial health authorities, 17 cases are now confirmed in Quebec, along with 266 people “under investigation” and 798 cases that have turned up negative.

The English Montreal School Board (EMSB) reacted to Thursday’s downpour of cancellations with the following statement: “To give ourselves some time to reflect upon the directives given to us by the Quebec government and to provide a little more time for the EMSB to review protocols, we now wish to inform you that all schools and centres will be closed on Friday, March 13, 2020.”

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The EMSB says its central head office will remain open and that the board’s principals will work from home and remain on standby to communicate with the head office.

After Thursday’s message saying they will remain open, the Lester B. Pearson School Board  (LBPSB) changed course and cancelled its schools today as well.

“We wish to apologize at the outset of this message for its lateness, but the current situation with regards to COVID-19 is changing rapidly,” reads the website statement. “The LBPSB has made the decision to close all of its Schools, Centres, and Daycares (including the Head Office Daycare) for tomorrow, Friday, March 13.”

As the situation continues to unfold, both school boards say they are committed to providing ongoing and current information to all parents and staff.

Here are the 14 Montreal-area school boards that are closed on Friday, March 13:

• Commission scolaire des Affluents
• Commission scolaire de Laval
• Commission scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys
• Commission scolaire Marie-Victorin
• Commission scolaire de Montréal
• Commission scolaire des Patriotes
• Commission scolaire de la Pointe-de-l’Île
• Commission scolaire de la Seigneurie-des-Mille-Îles
• English Montreal School Board
• Kahnawake Education Centre schools
• Lester B. Pearson School Board
• New Frontiers School Board
• Riverside School Board
• Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board