Quebec Is Set To Announce The Most New COVID-19 Cases Since The Pandemic Began
And the spike might not stop there.
Quebec is set to announce around 3,700 new COVID-19 cases on Friday — the highest since the beginning of the pandemic. Premier François Legault shared the grim projection in a Thursday press conference.
He said Quebec was seeing an "explosion" of infections. The last record number of new COVID-19 cases was 2,880 on January 6, 2021. On December 16, the province reported 2,736 new cases.
And the spike might not stop there.
"Experts think the number of cases is going to continue to increase," Legault said Thursday. And the number of hospitalizations in the province could rise with it.
The premier echoed earlier statements from Montreal Regional Public Health Director Dr. Mylène Drouin and CIUSSS Centre-Sud-de-l'île-de-Montréal Director Sonia Bélanger, who earlier in the week forecast an increase in new cases in the metropolis and warned Montrealers to be extra vigilant.
"The current situation in Montreal is not really what we were planning or expecting two weeks before Christmas," Drouin said. "I think it commands us to be more agile and resilient facing the Omicron situation."
Officials suggested the emergence of the Omicron variant, which Health Minister Christian Dubé said is more transmissible than other variants, is to blame for skyrocketing case numbers.
To combat its spread, the provincial government has reduced capacity limits for restaurants, stores and other venues, put a ban on dancing and karaoke, and reversed an earlier decision to loosen limits on private gatherings.
