COVID-19: Montreal brings back state of emergency as Omicron variant spreads
Global News
Montreal was last under a state of emergency in August because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Mayor Valérie Plante says the Omicron variant is the reason for it.
Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante has a declared a state of emergency as the number of cases of COVID-19 skyrockets in the cit.
“Just yesterday, Montreal recorded 1,455 new cases of COVID,” she said during a media briefing by Zoom on Tuesday.
Under a state of emergency, the city is granted exceptional powers to free up resources to deal with the crisis at hand, she said.
“With the announcement made by Quebec yesterday, the city is giving itself the means to protect its essential workers while maintaining public services,” Plante said.
On Monday, Quebec Health Minister Christian Dubé announced the closure of schools, gyms, cinemas and bars among other restrictions meant to curb the spread of the virus.
“The Omicron variant is forcing us to take extra precautions and be extra vigilant,” Plante said.
A previous state of emergency in Montreal, which lasted 17 months, was lifted on Aug. 27.
At the time, officials cited high vaccination rates, coupled with Quebec’s forthcoming vaccine passport system, for allowing the city to downgrade from a state of emergency to alert mode.
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