Placing an entire city under quarantine to prevent the spread of a virus is inconceivable, unenforceable and ineffective — and in Canada would be against the law, experts say.
Steven Hoffman, a professor of global health, law and political science at York University, said he was shocked when he heard China had shut down Wuhan, a city of 11 million people that is the epicentre of a new coronavirus outbreak.
“It’s totally unprecedented in public health,” Hoffman said. “It reminds me of what we might see in movies.”
The virus, which is from the same family of viruses that cause the common cold, has so far sickened close to 600 people in China and killed at least 17. Other countries, including the United States, have reported cases of the illness in recent days.
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Canadian public health officials have said several people in two provinces — Quebec and British Columbia — are under observation for signs they may have contracted a coronavirus from China, but no confirmed cases have been reported.
Wuhan and the nearby cities of Huanggang and Ezhou — home to a total of 18 million people — were locked down on Thursday in an unprecedented effort to contain the deadly new virus.
0:46 WHO officials recommend exit screening for coronavirus at airports
WHO officials recommend exit screening for coronavirus at airports
Hoffman said such an extreme quarantine measure would never occur in Canada for a number of reasons.
“In Canada, such a broad, unspecific quarantine measure like this would certainly violate our Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms because it would be a restriction on people’s rights that are not justifiable,” he said. “In the Canadian context, it’s inconceivable.”
He pointed to the federal Quarantine Act that gives the government the authority to isolate someone who is a risk to the public.
During the SARS outbreak, which killed 44 people in Canada 17 years ago, those who had the illness were quarantined in health-care facilities, Hoffman said, while those who came in direct contact with an infected person were in quarantine at their homes.
Plus, travel bans do not work, he said, because people who want to get out will find a way, which undermines the whole idea of a quarantine.
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“But from a scientific perspective, the travel ban in China is really intriguing,” he said. “If people are compliant and if there’s way to enforce it and to provide food to 20 million people, maybe it could work — I guess we’ll find out soon.”
0:51 ‘Five or six’ people under observation in Canada for signs of coronavirus
‘Five or six’ people under observation in Canada for signs of coronavirus
Meanwhile, the World Health Organization said Thursday the outbreak in China was not yet a global health emergency, but cautioned that the decision “should not be taken as a sign that WHO does not think the situation is serious or that we’re not taking it seriously.”
Large-scale quarantines are rare around the world, because of concerns about infringing on people’s liberties.
“To my knowledge, trying to contain a city of 11 million people is new to science,” said Gauden Galea, the WHO’s representative in China. “It has not been tried before as a public health measure. We cannot at this stage say it will or it will not work.”
Daniel Kollek, an emergency physician and a professor at McMaster University with a focus on disaster response research, scoffed at the idea of overarching travel bans, be it in China or Canada.
“People are shedding the virus before they’re sick — this is after the horse has bolted,” he said. “If you truly have contained everyone with illness and lock them down, you can shut it off. But that’s not feasible, so this kind of isolation doesn’t have any value.”
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One of the challenges provinces such as Ontario would be faced with in the case of an outbreak is hospital overcrowding, he said.
2:03 Wuhan stops outbound flights, trains to fight virus
Wuhan stops outbound flights, trains to fight virus
“Hospitals are overcrowded, emergency departments are overcrowded and we can’t get people into isolation rooms because they’re already occupied,” he said. “If you can’t isolate a patient, than the risk of communicating disease to other people is obviously higher.”
But Ontario’s Minister of Health Christine Elliott said current overcrowding in hospitals won’t be an issue.
“We have specific measures that will be in place,” Elliott said. “Anyone who is being tested in the future will be placed in isolation and that staff will be given the necessary protective equipment.”
Dr. Barbara Yaffe, Ontario’s associate chief medical officer of health, said they’ll be focused on both quarantine, should someone be infected with the coronavirus, and active surveillance, which means the local public health unit checks in with those who may have been exposed every day.
“With SARS our lessons learned were that full quarantine wasn’t really that necessary, it was more active surveillance is what we ended up doing toward the end and making sure the person doesn’t spread it any further,” she said.
OTTAWA – Conservative MP Garnett Genuis told a federal inquiry today that parliamentarians who were targeted by Chinese hackers could have taken immediate protective steps if they had been informed sooner.
It emerged earlier this year that in 2021 some MPs and senators faced cyberattacks from the hackers because of their involvement with the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, which pushes for accountability from Beijing.
In 2022, U.S. authorities apparently informed the Canadian government of the attacks, and it in turn advised parliamentary IT officials — but not individual MPs.
Genuis, a Canadian co-chair of the inter-parliamentary alliance, told a federal commission of inquiry on foreign interference today that it remains mysterious to him why he wasn’t informed about the attacks sooner.
Liberal MP John McKay, also a Canadian co-chair of the alliance, said there should be a clear protocol for advising parliamentarians of cyberthreats.
Several weeks of public inquiry hearings will focus on the capacity of federal agencies to detect, deter and counter foreign meddling.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
TORONTO – After being drafted in the third round (61st overall) of the 2023 MLS SuperDraft, forward Charlie Sharp decided to put his dream of playing professional football on hold.
He spent a couple of weeks training with Toronto FC that summer and then returned for a fifth year at Western Michigan University.
“It was a really tough decision for me,” Sharp recalled. “Because I knew that going back to school, nothing was guaranteed. I could get injured or not perform well, but it seemed to really work out for me.”
Sharp scored 19 goals and added eight assists as a senior, leading the Broncos to a 17-2-3 record and a third-round appearance in the NCAA tournament where they eventually lost to national runner-up Notre Dame on penalty kicks. Sharp, who scored or assisted in nine of his last 10 matches, ranked first in the NCAA with 0.95 goals per game and 2.30 points per game and was tied for second with seven game-winning goals.
The 23-year-old Sharp, whose rights were retained by Toronto, spent time with the TFC first team in this year’s pre-season and signed with Toronto FC II in February. On Tuesday, he joined TFC 2 teammate Nate Edwards, a wingback from Brampton, Ont., in signing a first-team contract.
“We are happy to officially elevate Charlie at this time,” Toronto GM Jason Hernandez said in a statement Tuesday. “His strong mentality and mature playing style will be a welcomed addition to our young player group in the first team.”
Both players signed contracts that run through 2025 with club options for 2026 and 2027.
The deals were completed in advance of Friday’s MLS roster freeze but took their time working their way through the league office.
“A bit of unorthodox path that I chose,” said Sharp. “But I think you’re seeing it more now with players that get drafted.”
“I’m super-happy,” he added. “I think I made the right decision.”
As a senior, Sharp was one of three finalists for the 2023 MAC Hermann Trophy, which honours the top NCAA soccer player. The award eventually went to Clemson senior forward Ousmane Sylla.
The six-foot-five 185-pounder from Brighton, Mich., finished his collegiate career with 42 goals 22 assists, and 106 points in 89 games. He ranks first in career goals and games and tied for fourth in assists for Western Michigan.
In returning to Kalamazoo for a fifth year, Sharp also succeeded off the pitch by completing his degree in computer information systems.
Despite some niggling injuries, Sharp has five goals and two assists in 16 appearances with TFC 2 this season. He made his first-team debut off the bench May 15 against Nashville.
“I had a lot of friends and family watching,” he said.
“It’s been a journey,” Sharp added. “I’ve been thankful for every step of the way.,”
The 21-year-old Edwards has one goal and two assists in 23 games with TFC’s MLS Next Pro team.
“He has been a top performer with TFC II this season and we look forward to his continued growth within our environment,” said Hernandez
Edwards, who also joined TFC 2 in February, made his first-team debut May 21 in Canadian Championship play against Ligue1 Quebec champion CS Saint-Laurent.
The five-foot-eight 167-pounder split his college career between Syracuse University and Purdue University Fort Wayne. As a senior in 2023, he had one goal and four assists for Syracuse and was named to the 2023 All-Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Academic Team and College Sport Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District Team.
At Purdue University Fort Wayne, he had two goals and an assist in 40 appearances across three seasons (2020-2022) with the Mastodons.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
CALGARY – A Calgary man who pleaded guilty to sharing Islamic State recruitment videos and propaganda on TikTok will spend the next six years behind bars.
Zakarya Rida Hussein was sentenced during a court appearance on Friday after he pleaded guilty to one of four terrorism-related charges.
Hussein admitted that he owned social media accounts that posted ISIS recruitment videos and propaganda.
He also admitted to sharing a bomb-making video online.
The man was arrested in June 2023 after a joint investigation led by the RCMP and the Calgary Police Service.
Hussein will need to submit DNA results and will be under lifetime ban from owning firearms after he’s released.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
