It’s okay to go for a walk, folks: Moose Jaw police

People being outside in small groups not an illegal offence, even if in parks and playgrounds

With the current public health orders in place to help stop the spread of COVID-19, concerns have recently been expressed by Moose Jaw residents with regards to any kind of outdoor activity.

The Moose Jaw Police Service has a simple message for those worries – go ahead and take a walk, but use common sense, and keep any gatherings to groups under 10.

“People who are allowed to go out are anyone who wants to go out, and our parks aren’t closed to the public,” said MJPS Staff Sergeant Randy Jesse. “But with the Sask Health public health order, we encourage everyone to read that and understand the definitions, such as self-distancing and those sorts of things.

“There’s a certain public misconception about people going out, where if it’s a husband and wife and they want to go out and have a walk, they’re certainly allowed to do that. What does become a problem is when people go out from different households. They’re encouraged not to break social distancing and physical distancing.”

The local police have received calls about people gathering in public, but unless it’s literally in contravention of the current public health order, it’s all fine and well.

“That’s all that in place for public gatherings right now,” Jesse said. “We’ll get a call saying, ‘there’s two people in the park’, but if they’re from the same household, that’s fine. What the province doesn’t want is people gathering from multiple households because that causes a spread from household to household.”

The key word in all of it is ‘encourage’. While people can gather, say, for a game of pick-up basketball or shagging some flies at the ball park, unless they’re all from the same family, it’s encouraged that they not do so just to help maintain public safety even if the law allows it.

“There’s a strong encouragement for people to keep their distance, even if there’s nothing enforceable, where someone would come up and give a ticket,” Jesse explained.

And, of course, things change dramatically if one has been travelling or has actually come down with COVID-19 and is in self-isolation.

“A lot of it is just common sense, and everything is different depending upon the situation,” Jesse said. “If you’re somebody who has COVID and you’re self-isolating, of course you’re not to leave your house or do anything since there’s a high probability you’re contagious.”

For more information – and before contacting the police about a public gathering – be sure to check the public orders section on the COVID-19 page at the Government of Saskatchewan website.

“I really encourage people to read the COVID-19 website and asking us the interpretation, the public health order is very clear on all of that,” Jesse said.