VICTORIA -- An A&W restaurant in the Mid-Island has temporarily closed its doors after a staff member tested positive for COVID-19.
Island Health informed the restaurant, located at 581-C Ryan Rd. in Courtenay, of the positive test result Thursday. According to A&W, the staff member's last day of work was on Feb. 21 between 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.
The restaurant said in a social media post that all close contacts of the individual have been notified through public health contact tracing.
While Island Health told the company that the risk of exposure is low for people who were not a close contact of the staff member, the restaurant has elected to temporarily close.
Employees at the franchise could be seen inside the locked premises Friday morning doing some cleaning. It is unknown how long the restaurant will be closed.
The A&W restaurant is the latest business to report a potential COVID-19 exposure on Vancouver Island.
Earlier this week, grocery stores in Courtenay and Duncan reported positive COVID-19 cases among staff members.
Meanwhile, several island schools notified families of possible coronavirus exposures this week.
