1) The #pandemic appeared to take another turn for the worse Wednesday in Quebec, with #COVID19 outbreaks rising sharply in all sectors and hospitalizations increasing, too. In this thread, I will call upon the government to consider drastic action to curb this latest resurgence.
2) Since Tuesday, provincial authorities have reported 81 more active #COVID19 clusters. The biggest one-day increase is in the workplace (54), followed by spikes in schools (11), daycares (10) and health-care institutions (7). Outbreaks linked to events dipped by one to 41. 
3) The number of confirmed #COVID19 infections is rising noticeably in the following regions: Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean, the Eastern Townships (where cases doubled to 90 since Tuesday), Outaouais, Gaspésie, Lanaudière, the Laurentians and Montreal.
4) The number of elderly residents suffering from #COVID19 climbed by 30 to 1,369 across the province. Deadly outbreaks have once again become a problem, this time in regional long-term care centres (CHSLDs), something the government pledged to prevent during this second wave.
5) For example, the CHSLD Marcelle-Ferron in Brossard — which has received scant media attention to date — recorded six more infections within the past 24 hours. Since Oct. 31, the number of people who have died from #COVID19 at that CHSLD has almost doubled from 12 to 23.
6) COVID-19 hospitalizations jumped by 39 to 573, the highest total to date in the second wave. In addition to admitting mostly those in their 80s, hospitals are treating more patients in their 70s. The spike in cases suggests hospitalizations won't taper off in the short term.
7) These hospitalizations are occurring amid a resurgence in emergency-room overcrowding not only in Montreal but across the province. See the chart below. At least two Montreal hospitals have declared staff outbreaks after treating ER patients with #COVID19.
8) The situation is no better in schools. The Quebec Education Ministry reported a daily spike of 92 #COVID19 cases among students and staff, setting another cumulative record, 2,899. The number of classes shuttered jumped by 137 to 1,174 across the province. See the chart below.
9) Meanwhile in the metropolis, community #coronavirus transmission is on the upswing in neighborhoods all over the city, as all the red circles in the chart below demonstrate. What’s more, Montreal posted 318 new #COVID19 cases Wednesday, the highest daily total in two weeks.
10) Although the number of active workplace outbreaks in Montreal declined to 49 from 70 a week ago, #COVID19 clusters in the food and beverage industry doubled from two to four. Hospitalizations have crept up in the city to 179 from 156 on Oct. 30. ICU stays remain at 26.
11) On this, Remembrance Day, let us also recall that since Sept. 1, 753 Quebecers have lost their lives to #COVID19. The chart below shows that Quebec’s #pandemic mortality rate is higher than those of the United Kingdom and the United States.
12) In light of the deteriorating situation, Quebec should consider new measures in the workplace (especially outside Montreal) and in schools while improving infection control in CHSLDs. Authorities cannot afford to wait any longer. Time is of the essence. End of thread.
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
