Qualicum Beach Coun. Scott Harrison has started distributing signs to local businesses, hoping to encourage social distancing.
He got them printed at Coombs Sign Shop and said he hopes the signs will be able to limit some stress for everyone while people do necessary shopping.
“If this is something that businesses feel works for them, hopefully everyone in the public and private sector can work together to print as many as are needed,” he said in an email.
“A huge shoutout to the Coombs Sign Shop, they literally worked with a sign shop in Denmark who’s been one of the first jurisdictions to distribute similar signs broadly.”
Harrison said he gave out 30 and has 17 signs left.
Barb Ashmead, the co-owner of Qualicum Pet Foods, said she’s been doing her best to encourage social distancing at her store.
She now has signs up that encourage and remind customers to practise social distancing at her store, which she owns with Deb Maddocks.
“You get some people who don’t really believe what’s going on and so you just keep them apart, you ask them to step back and go from there,” she said. “We’ve been doing that all along.”
Ashmead said she’s been trying to take distancing seriously, but still sees the value in the store staying open for the community — people need to feed their pets.
“I had to talk to somebody and they wanted me to show them some canned foods, so I showed it to them, they stayed two metres away,” she said.
READ MORE: Feds launch ad campaign urging social distancing, hygiene during COVID-19 crisis
The federal government has been encouraging everyone to practise proper social distance (two metres), wash their hands and to stay home as much as possible.
The Government of Canada page on COVID-19 calls isolation and self distancing “tried and true public health measures” that will “continue as long as feasible to interrupt chains of transmission in the community and to delay and reduce an outbreak where possible.”
Information specific to social distancing can also be found on the site, which says it’s the most effective way to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
It says you can practise social distancing by doing the following:
• Greet with a wave instead of a handshake, a kiss or a hug;
• Stay home as much as possible, including for meals and entertainment;
• Shop or take public transportation during off-peak hours;
• Conduct virtual meetings;
• Host virtual playdates for your children;
• Use technology to keep in touch with friends and family;
If possible:
• Use food delivery services or online shopping;
• Exercise at home or outside;
• Work from home.
