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B.C. dad, son launch online map for anonymous COVID-19 reporting

Bernard Trest said 91ƵCOVID Reported91Ƶ initiative is about helping people protect themselves
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Bernard and Max Trest launched COVID Reported Facebook page to crowdsource and compile exposures at workplaces, etc., that may otherwise not be being made public. (Contributed photo)

A White Rock father who filed suit against the provincial government last fall for its COVID-19 back-to-school plan has now launched an online effort to compile 91Ƶcritical data that we all have a right to know about and responsibility to share,91Ƶ when it comes to preventing spread of the virus.

Bernard Trest said he and his son Max started the 91Ƶ to show where exposure events have occurred locally, as well as highlight sites where safety protocols aren91Ƶt being followed 91Ƶ information that Trest says authorities and places of business haven91Ƶt been sufficiently forthcoming about.

91ƵThere is a deadly virus circulating and we are being kept in the dark about critical91Ƶ information about specifically where the virus is within our communities,91Ƶ Trest wrote in a Jan. 3 email to Peace Arch News.

Many businesses have been refusing to publicly share information on COVID-19 exposure events at their establishments, he continued, and B.C. health authorities 91Ƶessentially list absolutely nothing as if a deadly virus is not circulating in our communities.91Ƶ

Trest first went public with concerns about COVID-19 safety protocols in July, in connection with B.C.91Ƶs plan to return students to class last September. In August, he was one of two parents to file suit against the ministers of health and education, seeking an injunction restraining the ministries from moving ahead with back-to-school plans that didn91Ƶt include a mandatory mask policy in classrooms or compel physical distancing amongst students within the same learning group.

That application was dismissed in October, however, Trest said others are continuing to champion the school cause.

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Meanwhile, he and Max hope to take the COVID Reported initiative Canada-wide. As of Tuesday morning (Jan. 5), it had more than 1,500 followers.

COVID Reported, Trest said, encourages people to submit exposure tips in a private message. In addition to disclosing their own contact information (which Trest says is for verification purposes only and will not be made public), tipsters are asked to include supporting documents and details such as dates, as well as photos or screenshots of the exposure location if possible. Businesses noted violating COVID-19 safety protocols may also be reported, he said.

Trest said he and Max will endeavour to verify the tips, however, followers are encouraged to 91Ƶdo your own due diligence prior to making decisions based on this information.91Ƶ

91ƵWe are not posting any data blindly as COVID Reported is not a 91Ƶgossip91Ƶ type site,91Ƶ Trest added.

The site will be updated daily, he said, including a map showing the reported locations, dates of exposures and how many days between the exposure and notification.

Trest said the effort is about transparency around where COVID-19 infections are occurring, and helping people protect themselves from exposure.

91ƵWe are far from out of the woods and based on what we see in other provinces, the UK, and the United States, the COVID-19 situation in BC will get much worse,91Ƶ he said.

91ƵSince the BC CDC did not create and run a COVID Alert type app and since they refuse to provide transparency, it91Ƶs up to us as citizens to do it and share critical lifesaving data.91Ƶ



tholmes@peacearchnews.com
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Tracy Holmes

About the Author: Tracy Holmes

Tracy Holmes has been a reporter with Peace Arch News since 1997.
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