Nova Scotia Locks Down Even Tighter As Covid-19 Spread Becomes ‘Critical’
HALIFAX — Nova Scotia introduced harsh new lockdown measures on May 7 as Covid-19 continued to spread through the province at a record-setting pace.
The province announced 202 new Covid-19 cases Friday, including one death related to the virus. There are now 1,464 active Covid-19 cases in Nova Scotia, including 50 people in hospital and nine in the ICU.
In a somber press briefing, Dr. Robert Strang, the province’s chief medical officer of health, said the situation in the province is “critical.”
“I need to be honest with you: the volume of cases has exceeded the capacity of public health,” he said.
Strang said public health officials still haven’t been able to enter about 200 positive cases into the provincial system and that cases will remain high for the next couple of days.
He added that there was “no way” the outbreak would be under control in the next couple of weeks.
In response, Premier Iain Rankin today extended school closures, shut down the border even further, and added additional restrictions to retailers.
At the border, the province will stop nearly everyone attempting to come to Nova Scotia unless they have a very specific exemption.
Starting at 8 a.m. on May 10, the province will end its exemption for people arriving from Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island. It will also close completely shut down to people moving here, including if they have purchased a home.
The province will also be turning away people looking to come to a seasonal home for the summer.
Rotational workers arriving from Covid-19 hotspots will also have to go through a full 14-day isolation if they chose to come back home during a break.
Rankin said the new border rules can be summarized simply as “no coming in and out unless it’s completely essential.”
As of May 8, the province is also tightening up rules for retailers.
Capacity limits remain at 25 percent and only shops selling essential goods can remain open. Open stores should also stop selling products and services that aren’t essential “to the life, health or personal safety of people and animals.”
More information on the new rules is available here.
The province is also asking people to shop online where possible and that only one member of a family goes shopping at a time.
“For those who must do in-person shopping, shop for essential items only. It is not the time to go to Costco for sandless that you heard were in stock,” Strang said.
Strang said he knows people are exhausted from Covid but urged them to stay vigilant.
“Some of you have checked out, but remember the last part of any marathon is the hardest. I, too, am exhausted and extremely worried. My teams are exhausted. The health care system is exhausted. But none of us are giving up and you can’t give up either. I need your help, we need your help, we are all in this together,” he said.
“If we stay committed and together, doing the hard things for each other, we will start to emerge in June and can look forward to a much brighter summer. We can turn this around.”