Ontario closes provincial parks due to coronavirus

While it is the first day of spring, it is also an indoor day, and will be for a while. And to help curb the spread of COVID-19, the province has decided to close all Ontario Parks.

“As COVID-19 continues to quickly evolve, we want to ensure public safety and the well-being of our visitors and staff in Ontario’s provincial parks. In order to assist the province with its efforts to keep Ontarians safe during this time, all provincial parks will be closed to the public from March 19, 2020, until April 30, 2020,” said Christine Elliott, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health, and Jeff Yurek, Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, in a statement.

“This includes car camping, backcountry camping, roofed accommodations, day use opportunities and all public buildings.”

The province said that current visitors to provincial parks will be required to vacate by March 19.

“Any person or group with a reservation for arrival up to April 30, 2020, will automatically be provided a full refund with no penalty,” they said.

As of Thursday morning, Ontario had 214 cases of coronavirus, including one death and five resolved.