Most seem to comply as regulation takes effect
A walk through downtown shows many residents appear to be following the rules
Oyima Cadenas strode into Les Cours Mont-royal shopping centre on Saturday afternoon, as she has done many times before.
But on Day 1 of Quebec’s new public health regulation requiring everyone over the age of 12 to don a mask in indoor public spaces, the 30-year-old wasn’t wearing one.
This was pointed out to her, and within seconds she fished a blue face covering out of her purse and placed it over her mouth and around her ears.
“Yeah, I think it’s too much,” Cadenas said of the mandatory measure. “I’m not 100 per cent in agreement with it, but I know there’s a risk.”
Quebec has become the first province in Canada to implement such a regulation after weeks of pressure from a physicians’ group and other experts who argued that face coverings can prevent the spread of the highly contagious coronavirus.
Business owners are responsible for applying the regulation in stores, restaurants, office buildings and recreational facilities.
Quebec is dispatching more than 100 inspectors across the province to make sure the regulation is enforced. Business owners who fail to do so risk fines ranging from $400 to $6,000, depending on the severity of the infraction.
Starting Aug. 1, individuals who refuse to wear a mask could also be fined. A poll released Friday found that more than one in four Quebecers will avoid going out for a drink or a meal because masks are now compulsory in restaurants and bars. Merchants have said that they don’t want the added responsibility of policing the regulation.
Hundreds of people gathered in St-georges in the Beauce region on Saturday to protest having to wear masks.
However, most people in downtown Montreal appeared to be complying with the regulation.
At the Best Buy on Ste-catherine St. W., G. Augustine (she didn’t want to give her first name) was greeting customers at the entrance, ensuring they squirt sanitizer on their hands before walking into the home electronics store.
“It’s going well,” she said. “We haven’t had to turn anyone away. Everyone is wearing a mask.”
However, one of the customers returning an item waited in line with a mask covering her mouth only, her nose clearly visible.
Experts advise against this, warning that people can still inhale virus particles through their nostrils.
At Central Station, a young couple waited to board a train and neither was sporting a face covering. A security guard who stood nearby with a surgical mask over his mouth made no effort to tell the couple they were flouting the new regulation.
Ontario resident Subhash Mukherjee arrived in Montreal by train from Scarborough on Saturday afternoon, eager to visit some friends.
“I want to congratulate Quebec for its leadership and innovative thinking in this regard,” said Mukherjee, who was wearing a mask at the station.
Downtown streets were far less crowded than usual for a July Saturday afternoon. Most people wore masks, but the majority of pedestrians didn’t follow the arrow stickers on the sidewalks on Ste-catherine advising them to walk in only one direction on either side of the street.
There are exemptions under the new regulation for those with serious medical conditions, like cardiorespiratory problems. But people won’t be asked to produce a medical certificate. Premier François Legault said he will rely on the good faith of Quebecers to respect the regulation.