N.B. COVID-19 roundup: Restaurants, tourism industry face another lean holiday
CBC
The province's restaurant and tourism industry is preparing for another lean holiday period because of COVID-19 concerns and restrictions.
Cancellations are rolling in again this year as people rethink their holiday plans, said Carol Alderdice, president of the Tourism Industry Association of New Brunswick.
"I know cancellations are coming in all of the different restaurants, and I feel so bad for them," she said.
"Outside of, you know, of doing the social distancing [between tables] and the close 20 [contacts], the only other thing that they can do really is take out. It's really sad for restaurants. There's no doubt about it."
Under new COVID-19 measures announced earlier this week, restaurants are limited to 20 people per table and a distance of two metres must be maintained between tables, effective Friday at 11:59 p.m.
Restaurants have also been suffering from a labour shortage, said Alderdice, leading to "exhaustion" within the industry.
The tourism association is working with a coalition of small businesses in New Brunswick and advocating financial support for the small businesses.
"And of course, absolutely the federal relief must continue because there will be so many companies shutting down if that doesn't happen," Alderdice said.
She said the industry needs the federal government to pass Bill C-2 as soon as possible. The bill contains a tourism and hospitality recovery program with wage and rent subsidies of up to 75 per cent for hotels, tour operators, travel agencies, and restaurants.
Public Health announced 177 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, a new single-day record high.
There are 1,237 active cases, also a pandemic record high.
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Forty-one people are in hospital in New Brunswick with COVID-19, including 15 people in intensive care. Seven of them are on ventilators.
As of Thursday, 82.5 per cent of eligible New Brunswickers were fully vaccinated against COVID, 89 per cent had received their first dose, and 11.1 per cent of those eligible had received a booster dose.
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