Over the course of the month of May, three sectors will be allowed some degree of reopening. They are:
Retail stores not in shopping malls.
Retail stores that are in malls but have a direct door to the outside.
Construction and civil engineering.
Manufacturing.
Stores outside of the Montreal region will be permitted to reopen May 4, while those in the Montreal area will reopen May 11.
Construction projects, including road work, will fully resume May 11, with about 85,000 workers expected to be back to work.
Manufacturing companies will be allowed to reopen May 4 with some restrictions: those that have 50 or fewer workers will be allowed to reopen with full staff; those with more than 50 employees will only be allowed to have 50 workers plus 50 per cent of the total number of employees above that for any shift throughout the day.
Construction projects in Quebec will be able to resume in May under the province’s plan to reopen parts of the province’s economy. (Ryan Remiorz/The Canadian Press)
Legault said the idea is to reopen gradually and follow up to ensure there is no negative impact on infection rates or on hospitals.
And he said people will have to continue to follow physical distancing measures.
“Continue to act as if everybody you meet has the virus.”
WATCH | Legault says the plan is to restart the economy without restarting the pandemic:
Quebec Premier François Legault outlined his government’s plan to reopen the Quebec economy and says physical distancing will continue to be necessary. 1:24
Legault on Monday announced a plan that would allow children in daycare and primary school in most parts of Quebec to head back to class on May 11 — though attendance won’t be mandatory. Daycares and primary schools in the Montreal area would open on May 19.
High schools, CEGEPs and universities will reopen in the fall, Legault said, noting that officials felt primary-aged schoolchildren would benefit the most from additional weeks of class time.
“We will analyze the situation every day and adjust if necessary,” he said. “The watchword here is prudence.”
The province’s top doctor was quick to note that the easing of some restrictions did not mean that people should stop following public health measures and move around widely.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday said that the federal government would soon be releasing shared guidelines on how to handle reopening.
“We need common guidelines to make sure that the decisions being taken across the country are grounded in a shared understanding and appreciation of what science and experts are telling us.”
The shared principles, which Trudeau said have been agreed to by the federal, provincial and territorial governments, won’t provide specific dates or measures. Instead, they will serve as a framework around what needs to happen before the economy is gradually restarted.
Federal health officials update projections
Trudeau spoke ahead of a Tuesday afternoon briefing from federal health officials, who delivered revised modelling and forecasts for COVID-19 in Canada.
Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, said that ongoing public health measures, including physical distancing, are critical to staying at the lower end of projections.
“We are making clear progress to slow the spread and bring the epidemic under control thanks to the commitment of Canadians who are following public health advice to protect themselves and others,” she said.
The new modelling shows that while the number of new cases was doubling every three days previously, it is now doubling every 16 days.
Short-term projections predict between 53,191 and 66,835 cases by May 5, and between 3,277 and 3,883 deaths by that date.
Tam said the way the epidemic is unfolding varies across the country, “so when and how control measures are readjusted and are relaxed will need to be decided based on the local epidemiological situation.”
WATCH | Dr. Tam explains what goes into decisions about reopening schools and businesses:
Canada’s chief public health officer, Dr. Theresa Tam, talks about jurisdictions choosing to loosen public health measures to reopen certain facilities, including schools. 2:36
She said the new projections reflect the “heavy toll” COVID-19 is taking on vulnerable populations, including the elderly in long-term care homes and the homeless, and that relaxing controls too quickly will “squander” the efforts to date and put the population at risk of another wave of infection.
“We are actually going to be living with COVID-19 for the near future — and monitoring very carefully, so if there’s any upswing … any cases and contacts have to be identified and managed so you don’t get that upswing again.”
The problem areas continue to be long term care centres which make up 79% of deaths countrywide. Congregate living situations are also problematic. <a href=”https://t.co/1EHv0ARbw0″>pic.twitter.com/1EHv0ARbw0</a>
When asked whether he would send his own kids back to school if he were in Quebec, Trudeau said he would evaluate the situation at the time when schools actually open their doors.
“We know every single week we see changes in how we’re doing, on where there are outbreaks, on equipment and supports available,” he said, noting that he’d want to know what the school itself was planning to do to maintain physical distancing and create safe working conditions.
WATCH | Trudeau talks about Quebec’s plan to reopen some schools:
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke with reporters on Tuesday. 1:54
Neighbouring New Brunswick, which has had far fewer cases than Quebec, has already loosened some restrictions, including opening some outdoor spaces and allowing people to form “bubbles” of two families.
Prince Edward Island released its plan Tuesday to ease restrictions. Priority non-urgent health-care services are to begin May 1, including elective surgeries, physiotherapy, optometry and chiropractic treatment. Outdoor gatherings of limited size and activities such as fishing and golf will also be allowed.
Saskatchewan has also previously released a five-phase reopening plan, with expected dates attached to the first two phases.
Ontario plan focuses on how not when
Ontario, which unveiled its plan on Monday, didn’t attach any dates to its framework.
Premier Doug Ford said the framework is about how the province will reopen — not when.
“We’re all missing birthdays, religious celebrations and once-in-a-lifetime milestones. These are all too real, a painful loss of memories, and moments taken away by this deadly virus,” Ford said. “But that is why we must continue.”
A slow, methodical and gradual reopening will help the province avoid another period of shutdown, Ford said.
WATCH | Ontario reveals reopening plan, no timeline:
Ontario Premier Doug Ford revealed details of how the province would reduce COVID-19 restrictions and reopen businesses, but without giving any specific timeline. 1:54
Ford said he wants to see the economy “get going” but can’t risk an escalation in cases if the province opens prematurely.
As of 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Canada had 50,026 confirmed and presumptive cases of the novel coronavirus. Provinces and territories listed 19,244 cases as recovered or resolved. A CBC tally of COVID-19-related deaths, which is based on provincial health data, local public health information and CBC reporting, listed 2,958 deaths in Canada and two abroad.
A case tracking site maintained by U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University reported more than three million cases around the world, with over 212,000 reported coronavirus-related deaths.
There is no proven treatment or vaccine for the novel virus, which first emerged in China in late 2019. While most cases are moderate or mild, some people — especially the elderly and people with underlying health issues — are at greater risk of severe disease or death. Public health officials in Canada and around the world have cautioned that reported numbers don’t show the full picture, as they don’t reflect people that haven’t been tested or cases that are still under investigation.
Read on for a look at what’s happening in Canada, the U.S. and around the world.
What’s happening in the provinces and territories
In British Columbia, a COVID-19 outbreak in a poultry processing plant in Coquitlam is responsible for the majority of new cases reported by the province. Health Minister Adrian Dix says 39 of the 55 positive tests reported Tuesday are connected to the spread of the virus at Superior Poultry Processors Ltd. Read more about what’s happening in B.C., including a story about how Haida Gwaii communities are ramping up enforcement of a ban on visitors.
Manitoba says it will now test anyone with COVID-19 symptoms to see if they have the virus that causes the disease. Premier Brian Pallister says even people with mild symptoms, such as a runny nose or cough, can be tested. “What we’re looking to do by broadening the intake here, at least in its early days, is focused on giving … Manitobans that confidence that they need to have that they’re not carrying the disease — that when they move around, when they shop, they’re able to do so safely,” he said at a Tuesday morning news conference. Read more about what’s happening in Manitoba.
Ontario reported 525 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday, and 59 more deaths, ending three consecutive days of declining numbers of new cases. Hospitalizations went up, but the numbers of people in intensive care and on ventilators declined slightly. Read more about Ontario’s plan to reopen released earlier in the week.
In Quebec, Legaultsays while the number of deaths have risen in long-term care homes, other deaths remain largely stable in the province. He says that’s why the government is moving ahead with a plan to restart the economy and reopen primary schools and daycares. Read more about what’s happening in Quebec, including a story on the province’s push to do more testing.
WATCH | Parents wonder how to keep kids healthy when school resumes:
A pediatrician is worried that sending kids back to school too soon could undo all of the work that has been done to prevent the coronavirus from spreading. 4:06
New Brunswick’s chief medical officer says it’s possible masks become mandatory in some situations as the province moves forward with its reopening plan. “It’s very important that you get used to wearing masks,” Dr. Jennifer Russell said. Read more about what’s happening in N.B.
Newfoundland and Labrador reported no new coronavirus cases again on Tuesday. The province is still working on a reopening plan. “It’s really important that we do it right, and when we are ready we will make that announcement, and it will be soon,” Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Janice Fitzgerald told reporters.Read more about what’s happening in N.L..
WATCH | Why Canada’s top doctor changed her stance on masks:
Part 2 of 3 of Rosemary Barton’s exclusive interview with Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam about Canada’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. 3:07
From The Associated Press and Reuters, updated as of 2:45 p.m. ET
U.S. President Donald Trump defended his administration’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic Tuesday as he met with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and promised to help states safely begin reopening their economies.
Trump, seated next to DeSantis in the Oval Office, insisted that the United States was doing enough testing to protect Americans reentering the workforce and said he would sign an executive order to address “liability problems” in the nation’s food supply chain. He said the administration was talking to airlines about requiring temperature and virus checks for some travellers as they board flights.
Trump has claimed for weeks now that airlines have been screening passengers, even though they’re not.
And he said the idea of having passengers wear masks sounded “like a good idea.”
U.S. President Donald Trump listens as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis talks about the coronavirus response during a meeting Tuesday in the Oval Office. (Evan Vucci/The Associated Press)
The administration had been sharply criticized for not overseeing widespread testing, but Trump said no amount would ever be good enough for critics in the media.
Florida, with a high population of older Americans vulnerable to the disease, has long been a source of concern, and DeSantis was slower to impose social distancing guidelines than other governors were. But DeSantis, a fellow Republican and close Trump ally, promoted his state’s ability to test its citizens.
According to the Johns Hopkins database, the U.S. surpassed one million cases Tuesday, with more than 57,000 deaths.
What’s happening around the world
From The Associated Press and Reuters, updated at 4 p.m. ET
Italy’s Premier Giuseppe Conte says the risk of a second wave of COVID-19 “is concrete,” as the country moves into a new phase of living “alongside” the coronavirus with the loosening of some lockdown measures starting next Monday. Conte has been visiting some of the hardest-hit communities in the northern region of Lombardy in a sign of institutional support for the sacrifices of medical personnel and solidarity with citizens in their eighth week of total lockdown. The virus continues to spread in Italy, in particular in the north.
Commuters maintaining distance sit next to seats with stickers reading “Please don’t sit here” and “Respect social distancing” in an underground metro line in Milan Tuesday. (Miguel Medina/AFP via Getty Images)
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez says he hopes his country can scrap restrictions on movement by the end of June but warned the path to loosening limits will lead to a “new normal,” with safeguards such as wearing masks and strict hygiene rules staying in place until a vaccine is found. Spain recorded 301 new deaths, official data released on Tuesday show, bringing the total deaths from COVID-19 to 23,822. The country has 210,773 infections of COVID-19 that have been confirmed by the most reliable lab tests.
People queue as they wait to donate blood, at a Red Cross urgent blood drive, as efforts continue to help slowing the spread of the coronavirus disease in Spain. (Jon Nazca/Reuters)
Turkey’s health minister announced 92 new deaths from the coronavirus in the past 24 hours, raising the total death toll in the country to 2,992. Fahrettin Koca also reported 2,392 new confirmed infections, bringing the total to 114,653. At least 38,809 COVID-19 patients have recovered, according to data the minister posted on Twitter, including 5,018 who recovered in the past 24 hours. Turkish officials say that the number of daily infections is stabilizing and that the country could transition to normal life after a religious holiday at the end of May.
Employees of Ankara Metropolitan Municipality youth center sews face masks, in Ankara, Turkey Tuesday. (Adem Altan/AFP via Getty Images)
Britain is ramping up its coronavirus testing efforts. Health Secretary Matt Hancock says anyone over 65 and their households, and all workers who must leave their homes to work, are now added to the list of those eligible for tests as long as they show symptoms. All hospital patients and staff, as well as nursing home residents and workers, also qualify even if they have no symptoms. Britain is on track to record one of the worst coronavirus death tolls in Europe, after data published on Tuesday showed that fatalities topped 24,000 nine days ago.
Staff at the Mater hospital in Belfast, Northern Ireland observe a minute’s silence Tuesday to pay tribute to the National Health Service staff and key workers who have died during the coronavirus outbreak. (Peter Morrison/PA via AP)
In France, lawmakers on Tuesday adopted a government-proposed plan to ease the country’s lockdown, which has been in place since mid-March to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. The plan entails the progressive reopening of schools, public transport and other businesses previously deemed non-essential by the government from May 11. However, restaurants, cafes, cinemas and concert halls will remain closed. Public gatherings will be limited to 10 people at a time.
A French doctor wearing a protective suit checks the temperature of a woman in a testing site for COVID-19 in Gouzeaucourt, France Tuesday. (Pascal Rossignol/Reuters)
Russia President Vladimir Putin has extended the nation’s partial economic shutdown through May 11, saying the coronavirus outbreak is yet to reach a peak. Lockdowns imposed by Russian regions have kept most people, except those working in vital industries, at home. Russia has recorded 93,558 coronavirus cases and 867 deaths. Putin has instructed the government to prepare a plan for gradually lifting the lockdown after May 11.
A medical worker wearing protective equipment waits near ambulances, standing in line to deliver patients suspected of being infected with the coronavirus to the admissions department at the Pokrovskaya hospital in St. Petersburg, Russia, Tuesday. (Dmitri Lovetsky/The Associated Press)
In New Zealand, surfers greeted a spectacular sunrise in Christchurch, construction workers purchased their favourite espresso coffees, and some lawmakers returned to Parliament in Wellington on Tuesday, as some aspects of life began returning to normal. The country had been in a strict lockdown for over a month to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, but those conditions were eased a little on Tuesday to allow some parts of the economy to restart as new infections wane. New Zealand recorded three new cases of the coronavirus on Tuesday, bringing its confirmed total to 1,472, including 19 deaths.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says New Zealand has ‘won the battle’ against the virus but plans a careful, staged return to normal life. 1:23
Hong Kong reported no new coronavirus cases for a third straight day Tuesday and announced a resumption of public services next week and a relaxation of quarantine restrictions on travellers from mainland China. The eased quarantine will apply to students crossing the border daily to attend school in Hong Kong, and travellers deemed economically important to the city. However, an entry ban on non-residents flying into the city has been extended to June 7.
Worshipers wearing face masks to protect themselves from preventing the spread of coronavirus, pray to the King ghost on the outlying Cheung Chau island in Hong Kong to celebrate the Bun Festival Tuesday. (Kin Cheung/The Associated Press)
South Africa — the world’s largest producer of platinum, manganese and chrome ore — is letting its mines run at half-capacity after a national lockdown. The country’s miners are restricting bus loads to mine sites to 20 workers at a time, even though the cages used to transport workers underground hold up to 1,000.
South Africa has more than 4,700 cases and 90 deaths, according to a Johns Hopkins tally.
A man in protective clothing addresses locals queueing ahead of food distribution in Alexandra township, South Africa Tuesday. (Siphiwe Sibeko/Reuters)
In Peru, prisoners staged a riot to protest their precarious living conditions following the deaths of several fellow inmates from the new coronavirus, but the revolt in itself proved fatal. Nine prisoners were killed. The inmates were shot to death during a clash with authorities at the Miguel Castro Castro prison in Lima a day earlier. Who fired the deadly shots was under investigation. Peru’s overcrowded jails have been hard hit by the coronavirus: At least 13 prisoners have died and more than 500 have been infected. More than 100 workers have also fallen ill.
Inmates hold a sign that reads in Spanish “We want COVID-19 tests, we have the right to live”,” as they gather on a roof during a prison protest at Lurigancho prison in Lima, Peru, Tuesday. (Rodrigo Abd/The Associated Press)
MONCTON, N.B. – New Brunswick RCMP say two youths have been arrested after an emergency alert was issued Monday evening about someone carrying a gun in the province’s southeast.
Caledonia Region Mounties say they were first called out to Main Street in the community of Salisbury around 7 p.m. on reports of a shooting.
A 48-year-old man was found at the scene suffering from gunshot wounds and he was rushed to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Police say in the interest of public safety, they issued an Alert Ready message at 8:15 p.m. for someone driving a silver Ford F-150 pickup truck and reportedly carrying a firearm with dangerous intent in the Salisbury and Moncton area.
Two youths were arrested without incident later in the evening in Salisbury, and the alert was cancelled just after midnight Tuesday.
Police are still looking for the silver pickup truck, covered in mud, with possible Nova Scotia licence plate HDC 958. They now confirm the truck was stolen from Central Blissville.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.
MISSISSAUGA, Ont. – Golf Canada has set an impressive stretch goal of having 30 professional golfers at the highest levels of the sport by 2032.
The World Junior Girls Golf Championship is a huge part of that target.
Credit Valley Golf and Country Club will host the international tournament from Sept. 30 to Oct. 5, with 24 teams representing 23 nations — Canada gets two squads — competing. Lindsay McGrath, a 17-year-old golfer from Oakville, Ont., said she’s excited to be representing Canada and continue to develop her game.
“I’m really grateful to be here,” said McGrath on Monday after a news conference in Credit Valley’s clubhouse in Mississauga, Ont. “It’s just such an awesome feeling being here and representing our country, wearing all the logos and being on Team Canada.
“I’ve always wanted to play in this tournament, so it’s really special to me.”
McGrath will be joined by Nobelle Park of Oakville, Ont., and Eileen Park of Red Deer, Alta., on Team Canada 2. All three earned their places through a qualifying tournament last month.
“I love my teammates so much,” said McGrath. “I know Nobelle and Eileen very well. I’m just so excited to be with them. We have such a great relationship.”
Shauna Liu of Maple, Ont., Calgary’s Aphrodite Deng and Clairey Lin make up Team Canada 2. Liu earned her exemption following her win at the 2024 Canadian Junior Girls Championship while Deng earned her exemption as being the low eligible Canadian on the world amateur golf ranking as of Aug. 7.
Deng was No. 175 at the time, she has since improved to No. 171 and is Canada’s lowest-ranked player.
“I think it’s a really great opportunity,” said Liu. “We don’t really get that many opportunities to play with people from across the world, so it’s really great to meet new people and play with them.
“It’s great to see maybe how they play and take parts from their game that we might also implement our own games.”
Golf Canada founded the World Junior Girls Golf Championship in 2014 to fill a void in women’s international competition and help grow its own homegrown talent. The hosts won for the first time last year when Vancouver’s Anna Huang, Toronto’s Vanessa Borovilos and Vancouver’s Vanessa Zhang won team gold and Huang earned individual silver.
Medallists who have gone on to win on the LPGA Tour include Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., who was fourth in the individual competition at the inaugural tournament. She was on Canada’s bronze-medal team in 2014 with Selena Costabile of Thornhill, Ont., and Calgary’s Jaclyn Lee.
Other notable competitors who went on to become LPGA Tour winners include Angel Yin and Megan Khang of the United States, as well as Yuka Saso of the Philippines, Sweden’s Linn Grant and Atthaya Thitikul of Thailand.
“It’s not if, it’s when they’re going to be on the LPGA Tour,” said Garrett Ball, Golf Canada’s chief operating officer, of how Canada’s golfers in the World Junior Girls Championship can be part of the organization’s goal to have 30 pros in the LPGA and PGA Tours by 2032.
“Events like this, like the She Plays Golf festival that we launched two years ago, and then the CPKC Women’s Open exemptions that we utilize to bring in our national team athletes and get the experience has been important in that pathway.”
The individual winner of the World Junior Girls Golf Championship will earn a berth in next year’s CPKC Women’s Open at nearby Mississaugua Golf and Country Club.
Both clubs, as well as former RBC Canadian Open host site Glen Abbey Golf Club, were devastated by heavy rains through June and July as the Greater Toronto Area had its wettest summer in recorded history.
Jason Hanna, the chief operating officer of Credit Valley Golf and Country Club, said that he has seen the Credit River flood so badly that it affected the course’s playability a handful of times over his nearly two decades with the club.
Staff and members alike came together to clean up the course after the flooding was over, with hundreds of people coming together to make the club playable again.
“You had to show up, bring your own rake, bring your own shovel, bring your own gloves, and then we’d take them down to the golf course, assign them to areas where they would work, and then we would do a big barbecue down at the halfway house,” said Hanna. “We got guys, like, 80 years old, putting in eight-hour days down there, working away.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.
NEW YORK (AP) — Fenway Park has the Ted Williams seat. And now Citi Field has the Grimace seat.
The kid-friendly McDonald’s character made another appearance at the ballpark Monday, when the New York Mets unveiled a commemorative purple seat in section 302 to honor “his special connection to Mets fans.”
Wearing his pear-shaped purple costume and a baseball glove on backwards, Grimace threw out a funny-looking first pitch — as best he could with those furry fingers and short arms — before New York beat the Miami Marlins at Citi Field on June 12.
That victory began a seven-game winning streak, and Grimace the Mets’ good-luck charm soon went viral, taking on a life of its own online.
New York is 53-31 since June 12, the best record in the majors during that span. The Mets were tied with rival Atlanta for the last National League playoff spot as they opened their final homestand of the season Monday night against Washington.
The new Grimace seat in the second deck in right field — located in row 6, seat 12 to signify 6/12 on the calendar — was brought into the Shannon Forde press conference room Monday afternoon. The character posed next to the chair and with fans who strolled into the room.
The seat is available for purchase for each of the Mets’ remaining home games.
“It’s been great to see how our fanbase created the Grimace phenomenon following his first pitch in June and in the months since,” Mets senior vice president of partnerships Brenden Mallette said in a news release. “As we explored how to further capture the magic of this moment and celebrate our new celebrity fan, installing a commemorative seat ahead of fan appreciation weekend felt like the perfect way to give something back to the fans in a fun and unique way.”
Up in Boston, the famous Ted Williams seat is painted bright red among rows of green chairs deep in the right-field stands at Fenway Park to mark where a reported 502-foot homer hit by the Hall of Fame slugger landed in June 1946.
So, does this catapult Grimace into Splendid Splinter territory?
“I don’t know if we put him on the same level,” Mets executive vice president and chief marketing officer Andy Goldberg said with a grin.
“It’s just been a fun year, and at the same time, we’ve been playing great ball. Ever since the end of May, we have been crushing it,” he explained. “So I think that added to the mystique.”
