Regina shoppers, residents react to growing COVID-19 numbers, exposures

One month ago, the Regina area didn’t have any active cases of COVID-19.

As of Monday, the city and its surrounding area had 30 active cases.

“I’m being very careful,” Victoria Whitmore said Monday in the parking lot at Walmart in Harbour Landing. “I’m wearing a mask much more regularly now.”

Joan Adams said she is concerned about growing cases of COVID-19 in the city and area.

“I think you have to be cautious,” Adams said. “I’m a little worried.”

Victor Bamidle said he keeps hand sanitizer in his vehicle as a precaution.

“It’s scary,” he said.

A number of local businesses have also faced active cases of COVID-19, with three stores reporting possible COVID-19 exposures in the past week.

The Saskatchewan Health Authority reported a possible COVID-19 exposure at the Harbour Landing Walmart on July 29 and another one this past Wednesday.

There also were potential exposures at the Real Canadian Superstore’s Golden Mile location on July 30 as well as this past Friday, and at the Superstore’s Rochdale Boulevard location on Wednesday.

“You know, it seems to be all over nowadays,” Verna Hauck said. “They said it was coming so I guess it shouldn’t be a surprise.”

Walmart shoppers said they find the exposures concerning but not enough to change where they shop. Instead, they are taking extra precautions.

Whitmore only visits the store once a week on Mondays and keeps hand sanitizer in her car.

“I’ve got lots of masks,” she said.

Hauck also wears a mask in stores, while Adams says she simply won’t enter a store if she doesn’t feel comfortable.

Kim Lawrence visited the Harbour Landing Walmart on Monday morning with her two daughters. As she was not at the store during the time of the possible exposure July 29, she said she is not concerned.

“I think that’s just the current situation now, that there is a risk when you’re going out,” Lawrence said.

Lawrence and her family take several precautions now each time they leave the house.

“We do wear masks when we go … hand sanitizer, wash our hands when we get home,” she said. “We’re being a little bit more careful about where we’re going than we were.”

Bamidle said he was unaware that the Harbour Landing Walmart had been flagged for possible COVID-19 exposures.

“It concerns me,” he said. “I feel like I could have done a lot more to protect myself.”

He said he will definitely wear a mask next time he visits the store.

“My safety and everyone else’s safety is my concern and should be the concern of everybody,” he said.

Walmart employee not concerned

Mid Patel works at the Walmart in Harbour Landing. He was not working during the potential COVID exposure at the store July 29 and said he isn’t concerned.

“This is normal. If you’d asked me before two months, then it might affect me but now we just (have got) used to it,” he said.

Patel said he washes his hands frequently.

He was surprised to hear about Regina’s recent uptick in cases, however. Patel said he wants to see restrictions reimposed on Regina businesses.

“Earlier it was, like, 27 cases and it was locked down again. No more than 70 people (were) in the store. And now it’s again (30) cases but there’s no restrictions. I don’t know why,” he said.

Despite the recent increase in coronavirus cases in Regina, many are still grateful to live in a place with overall low case numbers.

“I think we’re so lucky to live in Regina, Saskatchewan,” Whitmore said.