An employee at the Milestones restaurant in downtown Victoria has tested positive for COVID-19.
On Thursday (Aug. 20), a staff member at the Wharf Street Milestones location told management about a positive coronavirus test result after being tested the day before, said Doug Smith, president of Milestones Grill and Bar, on Aug. 22.
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Smith explained that the employee’s most recent shift was Saturday, Aug. 15 and they began to feel symptoms the following Wednesday and sought a COVID-19 test. He noted the company took action and followed all protocols laid out by the provincial government and Island Health. As a precaution, any other employees who may have been in contact with the sick staff member have been quarantined and will not be returning to work for two weeks or until they have received a negative test result, he said.
The Inner Harbour restaurant’s interior was closed to the public on Friday while a professional cleaning crew sanitized the dining room, though the outdoor patio remained open. The dining room reopened on Saturday morning.
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Smith noted that the employee is believed to have contracted the virus outside the restaurant while spending time with friends from the mainland. He added that the company’s policy requires staff to wear masks and the employee with COVID-19 is not a server, so “any risk of further transmission is extremely low.”
The company is “continuing to monitor the situation closely” and has provided contact tracing information to Island Health. Smith said that it’s within the health authority’s jurisdiction to determine if customers need to be contacted.
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