Quebec curfew ‘sets the tone’ as pandemic rages across the country, says health expert
Tough stance sends ‘alarm bells’ to anyone still debating whether the second wave really is that bad, says Manitoba virologist
TORONTO — Canada’s hardest-hit regions are further tightening COVID-19 lockdown measures with public health officials blaming holiday gatherings for surging infections and experts suggesting Quebec’s clampdown may inspire more restrictions.
Ontario’s chief medical officer of health dashed expectations that southern Ontario kids could return to class this Monday by delaying in-person instruction another two weeks, citing reports of “concerning behaviour over the holidays.”
Holiday revelers were also blamed in Manitoba, where acting deputy chief public health officer Dr. Jazz Atwal said the province had seen a “bump” in cases. There were 201 additional COVID-19 cases and 12 deaths reported Thursday.
Restrictions on gatherings and business openings are set to expire Friday, however Premier Brian Pallister has already said they will be extended, with details yet to come.
The renewed clampdowns follow Quebec’s announcement Wednesday that residents there will face an evening curfew Saturday that bars people from leaving their homes between 8 p.m. and 5 a.m., except to work.
Those who violate the rules face fines ranging from $1,000 to $6,000.
University of Manitoba virologist Jason Kindrachuk said Quebec’s decision to begin a four-week curfew “sets the tone” for the nation’s escalating pandemic fight.
Kindrachuk, on a one-year secondment to the University of Saskatchewan’s Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization-International Vaccine Centre, suspected the tough stance sends “alarm bells” to anyone still debating whether the second wave really is that bad and may embolden political and public health leaders in other regions to tighten their own measures.
“Maybe it causes people in the western provinces where they’re not being that hard-hit right now to rethink what things they’re not doing as far as infection prevention control,” said Kindrachuk, pointing to widely varying school mask mandates as an example.
Infectious disease epidemiologist Ashleigh Tuite applauded Ontario’s move to delay in-class instruction in southern Ontario but said it falls short of tightening measures to limit community spread and address ongoing concerns about school ventilation, distancing and testing strategy.
“At this point (there’s) no sense of what is going to happen over the next two weeks that will make schools safer to return to when those two weeks are up,” said Tuite, an assistant professor at the University of Toronto’s Dalla Lana School of Public Health.
Quebec reported 2,519 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday and 74 more deaths, including 16 that occurred in the past 24 hours.
Meanwhile, Gov. Gen. Julie Payette appealed to Canadians’ sense of duty in a plea to adhere to public health measures including social distancing and minimizing movements.
In a video statement, Payette said vaccines offer hope but there aren’t yet enough to go around.
The push to speed up vaccinations was expected to be high on the agenda when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau convened a virtual First Ministers meeting later Thursday. Earlier this week, Trudeau voiced frustration over the pace of getting Canadians inoculated against the virus.