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Canadians can still travel to the U.S. during the COVID-19 pandemic — just not by car – CBC.ca

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After Karel Bennett was turned away at the U.S. land border between B.C. and Washington state last month, she didn’t give up hope of entering the U.S. to see her newborn grandson. 

The Canada-U.S. land border is closed to non-essential travel to help stop the spread of COVID-19. However, Bennett had heard rumours she may still be able to fly to the U.S. 

She said she was first tipped off by U.S. border officers at the crossing where she was denied entry.

“They said, ‘Have you thought about flying?’ And I said, ‘Well, no,’ and they said, ‘You might want to look at that.'” 

Bennett was desperate to visit her daughter, who lives just outside Seattle, because her daughter’s one-month-old  son was sick with a respiratory problem. So, Bennett took a chance and booked a flight from Vancouver to Seattle on May 22. This time, she had no problems getting through U.S. customs and entering the country. 

“I just couldn’t believe it,” said Bennett, who lives in Sooke, B.C. “I was so happy.”

The Canada-U.S. land border is closed to non-essential travel to help stop the spread of COVID-19. (The Canadian Press)

Many Canadians are unaware that, even though they’re currently barred from driving to the U.S. for leisure travel, they can still fly to the country. 

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) told CBC News that its travel restrictions apply only to Canadians trying to enter the U.S. at land border crossings, which includes travel by car, train, ferry and pleasure boats.

However, Canadian air passengers can still enter the country as long as they haven’t visited Brazil, China, Iran, Ireland, the U.K. or 26 European countries in the Schengen Area 14 days prior. 

Canadian travellers also likely won’t have to self-isolate for 14 days upon arrival. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that international travellers do so, but it’s not a requirement unless specified by a particular region or state. For example, Hawaii requires that air passengers self-isolate for 14 days. 

When Canadians return home, they must self-isolate for 14 days — as per federal rules. 

Flying rule not widely known

The U.S. air travel rule isn’t widely known on either side of the border. U.S. immigration lawyer Len Saunders said he only became aware of the details when one of his Canadian clients called him in mid-May — from Las Vegas. 

The client reported that he had managed to fly from Vancouver to visit his fiancée, who lives in Las Vegas.

“I was shocked,” said Saunders, whose office sits close to the Canadian border in Blaine, Wash. “Logically, when you look at it, if the border’s closed, it shouldn’t be any different whether you drive or fly.”

Len Saunders, an immigration lawyer in Blaine, Wash., said he was shocked when he first learned that Canadians can still fly to the U.S. (Gabriel Osorio/CBC)

Saunders immediately spread the word about flying to the U.S. to his Canadian clients who have loved ones in the country. He said dozens of them have since flown there and experienced no complications or self-isolation requirements. 

“It’s given them the opportunity to reunite with family members, so it’s definitely a welcome loophole to many Canadians.”

Saunders advises people to book their flights online. His clients who have tried to buy a plane ticket to the U.S. by phone have often been rejected by airline agents unaware that it’s allowed, he said.  

“Don’t talk to an agent, and you’ll have no problem.”

Some U.S. airlines currently offer routes between Canada and the U.S., and Air Canada resumed service to the U.S. on May 22.

WATCH | Questions about who new policy is designed to help:

Canada is now allowing some family members separated by temporary COVID-19 travel restrictions to cross the border from the U.S. 3:22

The permission to fly isn’t reciprocal: Canada prohibits U.S. visitors from entering the country via all modes of transport — including by plane. However, this week, the Canadian government loosened its travel restrictions to allow U.S. citizens with immediate family in Canada to enter the country.

Last month, Canada and the U.S. agreed to keep their shared land border closed to non-essential traffic until June 21, and, according to sources with direct knowledge of the situation, that date will be extended. But Canadians will still be able to fly to the U.S., unless the country revises its rules.  

Why let Canadians fly to the U.S.?

Bennett spent 10 days in the U.S. and is grateful she had the opportunity to reunite with her daughter and help care for her new grandson, who has since recovered from his illness.

“There’s really no words to express it. I’m very thankful,” she said about her visit.

But Bennett said she’s confused about why she was allowed to enter when the Canada-U.S. land border is closed. 

“It’s very bizarre,” she said. “Why would they do that?”

CBP didn’t provide CBC News with an explanation. Instead, it sent a link to a Department of Homeland Security document that states that “non-essential travel between the United States and Canada poses additional risk of transmission and spread of COVID–19.”

However, the document doesn’t state why its travel restrictions for Canadians only apply to land border crossings.

Saunders said he’s stumped why the U.S. is still allowing Canadians to fly to the country.

“It makes no sense, but many Canadians are happy to take advantage of this loophole.”

A word of caution

The Canadian government currently advises its citizens to avoid travelling abroad because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But it won’t prevent them from visiting the U.S. or other countries and will allow travellers to return to Canada — as long as they self-isolate for 14 days. 

However, because of the government’s travel advisory, Canadians will likely face difficulty getting travel insurance that provides medical coverage if they fall ill with COVID-19 while abroad.

Total U.S. coronavirus cases surpassed two million on Wednesday. Canada’s cases stood at just over 99,000.

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Former world title contender Troy Amos-Ross headed to Boxing Canada Hall of Fame

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November 5, 2024

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Twelve years after his last fight, former world title contender Troy (The Boss) Amos-Ross is headed to the Boxing Canada Hall of Fame.

Egerton Marcus, his cousin and 1988 Olympic silver medallist as a middleweight, is also being inducted.

Other inductees are Olympians Jamie Pagendam, Raymond (Sugar Ray) Downey, Howard Grant and Domenic (Hollywood) Filane, former amateur world champion Jennifer Ogg and former Olympic boxing coach Colin MacPhail.

“It’s incredible,” said the 49-year-old Amos-Ross, a former Canadian and Commonwealth cruiserweight champion. “I’m very happy to be part of that elite group.”

The induction class will be honoured Nov. 24 in Sarnia, Ont., during the Canadian amateur boxing championships.

Amos-Ross is already in the Ontario Boxing Hall of Fame and Brampton Sports Hall of Fame.

Born in Georgetown, Guyana, in 1975, Amos-Ross moved to Canada with his family in 1982. He was taught to box by his father Charles Ross, a former Guyana Olympian, and joined the Bramalea Boxing Club in 1986.

Amos-Ross competed for Canada as a light-heavyweight in both the 1996 and 2000 Olympics.

He finished sixth in ’96 in Atlanta, recording two wins before losing to eventual gold medallist Vassiliy Jirov of Kazakhstan in the quarterfinals. Four years later in Sydney, he was stopped by Nigeria’s Jegbefumere Albert in the round of 16.

He won bronze as a light-heavyweight at the 1999 Pan Am Games in Winnipeg.

Turning pro, he won 23 of his first 24 fights before losing to American Steve Cunningham in a fight for the vacant IBF world cruiserweight title in Neubrandenburg, Germany. Amos-Ross lost by fifth-round technical knockout when the doctor stepped in because of a cut round the Canadian’s eye.

Amos-Ross won two more fights before ending his career in a September 2012 loss to IBF cruiserweight champion Yoan Pablo Hernández in Bamberg, Germany. The German-based Cuban was awarded a 114-113, 115-112, 116-112 decision that drew derisive whistles from the crowd.

“I pretty much pumped the floor with him today,” Amos-Ross said at the time. “I know I won the fight because I put all my hard work into it. I’m too strong, too fast. I’m just a better boxer today … it’s a bad decision.”

In 2005 he won the Canadian cruiserweight title and, in 2007, the Commonwealth championship. In 2009, Amos-Ross also was the last man standing in Season 4 of the “The Contender,” an American TV series featuring 16 cruiserweights.

Amos-Ross retired with a 25-3-0 record (the other loss was a 2005 split-decision to American Willie Herring).

He remains active in the sport today, training former world champion Jean Pascal and Triston Brookes, who takes on Uruguayan Nestor Faccio on Saturday in Hamilton.

Amos-Ross also coaches amateur fighters at the Bramalea Boxing Club, working with his brother Shawn Amos-Ross to help Simran Takhar, Abdullah Ayub and Aayan Ahmad Khokhar to gold and Ibna Sharma to silver at last month’s Golden Gloves Provincial Championships in Windsor, Ont.

Amos-Ross is working on putting on training camps for kids aged 12 and over as far afield as South Africa and Hawaii.

“For me, it’s about giving back and also sharing the knowledge of boxing and sport,” he said.

“It’s to help them with physical education, get their body healthy,” he added. “A strong heart leads to a strong mind.”

Amos-Ross has always had more than a few strings to his bow.

He studied fashion design at George Brown College and had his own clothing company, Ross Wear, for a while.

He also acted in several movies, playing opposite Russell Crowe in “Cinderella Man” in 2005, “Resurrecting The Champ” in 2007, and portrayed Floyd Patterson in “Phantom Punch” in 2008 with Josh Hartnett and Samuel L. Jackson.

When not helping others excel in the ring, the father of two runs Mount Pleasant Montessori School in Brampton, a childcare centre for some 100 kids up to the age of six. Amos-Ross and his then-wife Alison McLean opened the facility in 2014 and still work together.

—

Follow @NeilMDavidson on X platform, formerly known as Twitter

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.



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Penn State police investigate cellphone incident involving Jason Kelce and a fan

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November 5, 2024

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Penn State University police are investigating an altercation between retired Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce and a fan over a cellphone that occurred over the weekend before the game between the Nittany Lions and Ohio State.

The police department’s incident log includes an entry registered Saturday in which an “officer observed a visitor damaging personal property.”

PSU public information officer Jacqueline Sheader confirmed to The Associated Press on Tuesday that the incident involved Kelce and said that the process is ongoing. The report listed the potential offenses as criminal mischief and disorderly conduct.

Video on social media showed Kelce walking through a crowd near Beaver Stadium and fans asking for photos and fist bumps when one fan began to heckle Kelce and appeared to shout an anti-gay slur about his brother, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, for dating pop star Taylor Swift.

At that point, video showed Kelce grabbing the fan’s phone and throwing it to the ground, then turning to confront the man dressed in Penn State attire. Kelce appeared to use the same anti-gay slur during the exchange before another fan stepped between them before the altercation could escalate.

Kelce apologized during ESPN’s pregame show Monday night.

“In a heated moment, I decided to greet hate with hate,” Kelce said before ESPN’s broadcast of the Buccaneers-Chiefs game. “I fell short this week.”

Kelce added he’s “not proud” of the interaction with the fan, saying he “fell down to a level that I shouldn’t have.”

___

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