Quebec Is Putting 5 More Regions In The Red Zone

In a press conference on October 8, Quebec Health Minister Christian Dubé announced that the province is adding five more regions to its list of COVID-19 red zones.

Red zone restrictions will be in effect in the municipalities of Nicolet-Yamaska, Bécancour, Drummond, Portneuf and the city of Trois-Rivières as of October 10. 

"It's the whole St. Lawrence Valley that turns red, with a few close exceptions," Dubé said. 

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Restaurants and bars in the new red zones will be closed as of Saturday, and some red zone measures affecting sports and schools will come into effect in those areas at midnight on October 14.

Dubé said measures involving schools will be slightly delayed, compared to business closures, so as to give school administrators more time to explain new procedures to students.

Dubé also introduced checkpoints across provincial roads and parks to monitor interregional travel. The move was requested by public health director Horacio Arruda to monitor whether people are travelling through them for essential purposes.

Dubé said the checkpoints, which could come into effect as early as tomorrow afternoon, will be placed on roads leading to Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, which are currently yellow zones.

Dubé said that while it's too early to tell if red zone restrictions are working to flatten the curve, residents' efforts will show in the weeks to come.

"The efforts we do this [long] weekend will make a big difference in the next 10 to 15 days," he said.