“We are in a race against time,” said Premier Francois Legault, adding that Quebec have so far lost the race.
An 8 pm-5am curfew will go in on Saturday. Restaurants, gyms, theaters and most retail stores will be closed for at least four weeks. Legault calls it a “shock therapy” that he hopes will not be extended.
Primary schools will open as planned next week, but more students will have to wear masks. Secondary schools will open 18 January
All Quebecers are asked to stay at home and travel only if absolutely necessary. Those who do not comply could face fines in the thousands of dollars.
“We’re talking here about saving lives and we’re talking about saving our health care system,” Legault said.
For weeks, many health care professionals have been lobbying the Quebec government to lock it down further, after warning that its hospital system was going well.
“None of us want another hard lock, but we are in a precarious position right now,” said Dr. Marina Klein, research director and infectious disease specialist at McGill University Health Center, in an interview with CNN.
For months, Quebec has seen a steady increase in new cases, hospitalizations and coronavirus deaths.
Data from Quebec’s ministry of health shows that about 1,400 people are currently hospitalized with Covid-19, second only to the Ontario region, with 76 new hospitals reported Tuesday alone.
A health advisory group in Quebec warned in December that Quebec could lose its hospital capacity by the end of January if hospitals continue to grow.
Klein says the partial restrictions that have been in place in Quebec since their collapse have been ineffective against the spread of the virus.
“It’s like a slow delivery that we’ve been under, compared to the other solution, to do something that’s really hard, very difficult for a short time that tends to be a lot more effective,” Klein says. She said health care workers are tired and confidence is low, as many have been exposed to the virus or are already infected.
Canada has been dealing with a stagnant second wave of the virus, which is now becoming more dangerous during the day, according to public health officials.
“Covid-19 is spreading among people of all ages, with high levels of disease across all age groups. However, nationally, disease rates are higher among those aged 80 and over who are at risk most for bad results, “said Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada ‘s chief public health officer, said in a statement released Wednesday.
“The week-long effects of weeks and months of elevated disease activity are still being seen in rising numbers of serious illness and death …”
Ontario, which is home to two out of five Canadians, is also being treated by a surgeon in hospitals despite having locked itself in the province December 26, the Ontario government says it is look Quebec carefully and consider tougher measures.
“I will always say that everything is on the table but we will see where the numbers go,” Doug Ford, Ontario’s chief executive, said at a press conference Tuesday.
Legault says businesses and schools are not a major source of distribution. Instead, private, social gatherings within homes have led to a crisis. He said locking a type of circulation breaker was now required.
“My concern at the moment is that we are introducing an even greater usable pressure, which is the only thing that is currently being seen in the UK and the UK. that would capture a disease that is already under our control, we are talking about a situation that we have never seen, “said Dr. Klein.