COVID-19 on P.E.I.: What's happening Tuesday, July 7
P.E.I. Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Heather Morrison is now strongly recommending masks should be worn more often to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
The changed advice is based on new evidence from around the world about how the coronavirus spreads, she said. In time we will become more comfortable with wearing masks, she said.
On another topic, Morrison said the July 3 opening of the Atlantic bubble has made for busy times at the province's points of entry. The policy allows residents of the four Atlantic provinces to travel among them without self-isolating for two weeks.
Over the weekend, Morrison said, 5,719 vehicles crossed the Confederation Bridge and 794 vehicles arrived on P.E.I. by ferry. There were 164 arrivals at the Charlottetown airport.
She congratulated the teams working at the provincial borders for keeping traffic flowing smoothly.
Morrison also noted there have been some updates to guidance documents.
She said cinemas have submitted operational plans that have been approved, and she expects they will be opening soon.
The distance between brass instrument players has been reduced to two metres. In sports, one-day tournaments are allowed so long as total numbers don't exceed gathering limits.
There are relatively few activities that are not allowed with some modification now, she said.
Other COVID-19 news
Earlier Tuesday, Premier Dennis King said the recent Maritime outbreak might have been prevented with better co-ordination between provincial and federal authorities.
P.E.I.'s Official Opposition is calling on the province to create a memorandum of understanding that clearly lays out the shared responsibilities among the four Atlantic provinces with regards to COVID-19 and the regional bubble.
The spring lobster season on P.E.I. ended July 4 after a late start on May 15, in a year when fishermen faced low prices and catch limits due to a shortage of labour in processing plants. But with demand growing locally and nationally, people in the industry hope for a rebound by next year.
COVID-19 didn't have much of an impact on P.E.I.'s bioscience sector. The sector continues to grow, and is building a new 20,000-square-foot facility to meet the demand.
Strawberry U-picks have begun to open up on P.E.I., but they must adhere to the government's COVID-19 guidelines.
The new cases bring P.E.I.'s COVID-19 total to 32, with 27 considered recovered.
Also in the news
Further resources
More COVID-19 stories from CBC P.E.I.
