Regina region placed under stricter public health measures

Caregivers, support personnel and tradespersons who aren’t a member of the household are not included in the maximum number of people allowed in that household.

As well, a travel advisory is being implemented for Regina and surrounding communities. Unnecessary travel in or out of the Regina area is not recommended.

The government also recommended people in the area work from home, including government and Crown corporation employees.

Starting Sunday at 12:01 a.m., all restaurants and licensed establishments are required to close for in-person dining. Takeout and delivery are permitted.

Venues such as banquet and community halls, conference facilities, arts venues, museums, libraries, live theatres, cinemas, arcades, bowling and science centres, or any non-essential indoor locations that previously had a limit of 30 individuals also must close.

Places of worship in the Regina area can have a maximum of 30 individuals.

The new orders apply to the City of Regina and area including: Belle Plaine, Pense, Grand Coulee, Lumsden Beach, Regina Beach, Craven, Lumsden, Edenwold, Pilot Butte, White City, Balgonie, Kronau, Davin, Gray, Riceton, the RM of Lajord, the RM of Edenwold, the RM of Sherwood, the RM of Pense and the RM of Lumsden.

According to the Ministry of Health, the Regina region has 763 of the 891 variant cases that have been detected by screening in Saskatchewan. The zone also has 312 of the 360 confirmed cases of variants of concern determined by whole genome sequencing in the province.

The ministry also revealed 91 of the 150 new cases reported in the province on Tuesday were in the Regina region. The zone has recorded 540 new cases over the past six days.

WHL bubble not impacted

The expansion of the Public Health Order for Regina and Area will not impact the WHL bubble in the city, according to Chief Medical Health Officer Dr. Saqib Shahab. He told reporters everyone involved in the hub has taken a “very professional approach.

“So far the Western Hockey League hub is working successfully, they’re working closely with public health officers, the City of Regina, the University of Regina,” he said. “That hub exists in a city that unfortunately now is seeing high rates [of infection]. Everyone needs to be very diligent with the protocols in the WHL hub but so far it’s working well.”

NDP calls for ‘circuit-breaker’

Earlier Tuesday, the Saskatchewan NDP called for a short-term “circuit-breaker” in the Regina region to curtail the spread of COVID in the area.

“Families are looking for leadership that has not come from this government,” Leader Ryan Meili said in a media release. “The worst threat to business is Scott Moe’s complete failure of leadership in getting this pandemic under control. He saw the modelling, he knew this was happening, and he chose to relax restrictions instead of protecting Saskatchewan people.

“His gamble on the vaccine being the only answer is a gamble with people’s lives and livelihoods.”

The NDP called on the government to reduce household bubbles to previous levels, move bars and restaurants to delivery and takeout only, move workers in the civil service and Crown sectors to work from home, advise against any non-essential travel to and from Regina, and expand the measures to other communities if there’s evidence of variant spread elsewhere.

Many of its recommendations were in the government’s new public health order.

“Because of the Sask. Party’s inaction, we must now call for what we all hoped could be avoided: A targeted, short-term circuit-breaker in Regina and area,” said Health Critic Vicki Mowat. “It is the only way to get case numbers down and prevent hospitals from being overwhelmed while vaccines are deployed.

“We must also keep a close eye on conditions in the rest of our province. Regina is not an island and it is very possible the variants will begin to spread more quickly and soon.”

by CJME News

Regina region placed under stricter public health measures

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