Amazon facility outside Toronto to close due to COVID-19 outbreak

Local health officials in Canada announced Friday that an Amazon facility outside of Toronto will be closed for two weeks due to a COVID-19 outbreak.

Although coronavirus rates have been decreasing locally, the statement said cases in the facility have gone up with everyone in the facility having a high-risk exposure to the virus.

Due to the high-risk exposure, all employees will need to quarantine for the next two weeks, until March 27.

Employees who have already had COVID-19 within the last 90 days and are done with their isolation period do not have to quarantine.

“This Amazon facility is in a vulnerable community and employs thousands of people. Immediate action must be taken to protect these essential workers and the community where they live,” Medical Officer of Health Lawrence C. Loh said.

“This was a difficult decision but a necessary one to stop further spread both in the facility and across our community,” Loh added.

Amazon has been struggling the past year dealing with coronavirus outbreaks within its facilities, with some workers dying after getting the virus at work.

Amazon wrote a letter to the chairman of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices in December asking for warehouse workers and other essential employees to be prioritized for the coronavirus vaccine.

The Hill has reached out to Amazon for comment.