The AGO and ROM are temporarily shutting down because of coronavirus
Though it's likely no surprise considering the significant amount of closures and cancellations already announced in Toronto and across the country, both the Royal Ontario Museum and the Art Gallery of Ontario have announced that they'll be closing temporarily in light of the COVID-19 outbreak.
The AGO sent out an email and posted a statement to their website earlier today announcing that they'd be closed temporarily, effective as of 9 p.m. Friday night.
The AGO’s highest priority is the health & safety of our visitors, staff, volunteers and extended community. Upon the advice of Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, the AGO is closing temporarily at 9pm tonight, through April 5. https://t.co/eLIssq3Ffx pic.twitter.com/hoP0ayXDzQ
— Art Gallery of Ontario (@agotoronto) March 13, 2020
"Taking into account today's directive from the Chief Medical Officer of Health to immediately suspend all gatherings of more than 250 people, the AGO will be closed to the public starting tomorrow at 9 a.m.," said Stephan Jost, the Michael and Sonja Koerner director and CEO of AGO, in the email.
The statement says they anticipate that the closure will last until April 5, which is in alignment with the Ontario public school closure, but they'll reevaluate the situation as it develops.
Meanwhile, the ROM posted a special notice to its website Friday afternoon announcing its closure.
The health and safety of our visitors, staff, and volunteers is of utmost importance in these challenging times. We anticipate remaining closed to the public until April 5 but will continue to take guidance from our public health officials regarding the duration of this closure.
— Royal Ontario Museum (@ROMtoronto) March 13, 2020
"In light of the recent announcement from the Ontario Chief Medical Officer of Health, we will be closing the ROM to the public, effective March 13 at 5:30 pm; this includes all programs, internal and external events," the notice reads.
"The health and safety of our visitors, staff, and volunteers is of utmost importance in these challenging times. We anticipate remaining closed to the public through to April 5, but will continue to take guidance from our public health officials regarding the duration of this closure."
