'It's never been this bad': Students frustrated after all-residence outbreak at University of Waterloo
27 cases reported Wednesday, 2,000 students living on campus told to generally stay in their dorms
University of Waterloo students are expressing fear and frustration after a COVID-19 outbreak was declared in all student residences Tuesday.
By Wednesday afternoon, the outbreak, declared by Region of Waterloo Public Heath and Emergency Services, had reached 27 confirmed cases.
The about 2,000 students in residence have been told to stay in their dorms except to study, eat and exercise.
"I was shocked because we have had outbreaks, but it's never been this bad," said Nodebenna Nwokolo, a first-year arts and business student.
"I was also mad because people should understand we're in the middle of a pandemic … You shouldn't be putting other people at risk just because you want to have fun the way you want to."
Nwokolo said students tend to respect the rules at home, but sometimes leave the dorms to party elsewhere.
"As first years, you want to have fun, the freedom is still there, so people go off campus instead, and then bring back whatever it is and spread it around."
Hope Pembe, who studies global business and digital arts, also lives in residence. She believes that after the Waterloo health region moved into the red zone and eased some lockdown restrictions, students may have been letting their guards down and seeing more people.
"It does create more cases I guess, so it wasn't huge news for me," said Pembe.
Both Nwokolo and Pembe said the outbreak won't change things too much for them — they've been mostly keeping to their rooms and will continue to do so in the weeks to come.
'Super casual'
Second-year student Taliesan Long said campus has been quiet in recent weeks, and quieter still since the lockdown began. Students tend to be careful around strangers but may be less so with their close circle of friends, he said.
"It's still super casual, people still do get together," said Long, who studies materials and nanoscience and is living in residence.
Long said lecture halls have blocked off rows to help students keep their distance. He's noticed more staff around making sure people are six feet apart and residences have rules against bringing in outside guests.
"There's some people that follow every detail. There are other people who don't care, but I think most people are in the middle," he said.
"They try to follow it as best they can, but they're not going to change their whole lives dedicated to following every single detail of the rules."
'It is very scary'
Third-year arts student Mon Hererra doesn't live on campus, but said the outbreak still worried her.
"COVID is this thing that sounds so far from you most of the time, and then when you realize that there are so many cases at your university, at the place where you go and study every day," said Hererra.
"It is very scary to think that you could have been in contact with someone who had COVID, or that someone you know who's living in residence might be in a place where they can get the disease as well."
The university said all high-risk contacts have been notified, but students should self-monitor for symptoms and seek testing if needed.
Hererra said she's sympathetic to students stuck in their rooms as the semester comes to a close. The majority of them are first-year students who may be away from home for the first time, she said.
"I can't begin to imagine how lonely it is, especially now that we have exams approaching."
Outbreak linked to gatherings
The all-residence outbreak is linked to a cluster of COVID-19 cases that formed after off-campus gatherings were held earlier this month in Waterloo.
Some of the people at the gatherings had links to the University of Waterloo and Wilfrid Laurier University, regional public health said at the time.
People who attended the gatherings spent long periods of time indoors and unmasked without distancing, according to regional public health.
Nwokolo said students who break the rules should face consequences.
"There should be some type of consequences or repercussion so it reduces the amount that people do want to break the rules," she said.
Long agreed. He thinks the school should consider a three-strike policy, where repeated risk-takers are sent home.
"I feel like that's the best, the safest thing to do, because these warnings aren't really doing anything," he said.
Wilfrid Laurier University has said it would consider consequences for students who violated provincial laws, and "put the health and safety of others at risk."
"If we are aware of people who are breaking rules persistently, we will look at that and take appropriate action," Nick Manning told CBC News on Tuesday.
Classes will end at the University of Waterloo on April 14 and exams will run until April 26.
In the few weeks remaining, the students who spoke to CBC News say they're focused on staying safe through the final stretch of the semester.
"Hopefully everything will be controlled in the next few weeks and there are no more outbreaks happening on campus or outside of campus," said Hererra.