1) In his news conference on Tuesday evening, Premier François Legault, Health Minister Christian Dubé and chief public health officer Horacio Arruda did not address at all the #COVID19 surge in schools. In this thread, however, I will dwell again on this important subject.
2) It’s the facts that compel me to do so, given that the number of classrooms that schools across Quebec have had to shutter since a week ago Tuesday is nearly 400. What’s more, the Education Ministry reported that three more schools closed because of #COVID19 outbreaks. 
3) In Laval, Hillcrest Academy announced Tuesday it was shutting temporarily as well after confirming 16 active #COVID19 cases. At the current pace, the province is poised to report as early as Wednesday more than 3,000 cases among students and staff in less than four weeks.
4) If the much more transmissible B117 variant gains a foothold in Quebec, it'll no doubt spread through schools as well as stores that are to reopen on Monday. In that context, it’s hard to understand why the Premier and Arruda did not speak about how to better protect schools.
5) To the contrary, the Premier suggested that CEGEPS, or junior colleges, and universities reopen soon, but with no clear plan on exactly how to do this. Lifting restrictions without detailed guidance risks accelerating the transmission of the new, more contagious variants.
6) Meanwhile, the drop in #COVID19 hospitalizations belie the very real threat the three variants pose as Quebec eases #pandemic restrictions. In Montreal, where half of surgeries are being postponed, the number of such hospitalizations declined by 19 to 524 on Tuesday.
7) The metropolis posted 536 #COVID19 cases (after a weekend drop in testing), up from 343 the day before. Still, Montreal’s seven-day rolling average was 24.86 cases per 100,000 residents, just below Harvard University's stay-at-home threshold. Please see the chart below.
8) At the neighborhood level, community transmission remained high in five health districts, with Rivière-des-Prairies-Anjou-Montreal-Est claiming the highest number of #COVID19 cases. Yet it appears it's business as usual when it comes to running elementary and high schools.
9) Provincially, the number of #COVID19 outbreaks plummeted by 44 to 1,293 on Tuesday, suggesting that Quebec’s nightly curfew and closing of non-essential businesses have been successful. Next Monday, though, those same businesses will reopen.
10) The one potential bright spot may be found in eldercare homes, with the first faint sign that the first shot of the #COVID19 vaccine may be proving effective in those living in long-term care centres. The number of new cases in those centres dropped by 11.97% since Monday.
11) By comparison, the number of new cases in private seniors’ residences — where most occupants have not yet been vaccinated — decreased by 8.83%. Obviously, a one-day difference between the two does not a trend make. We’ll see whether this trend holds over the coming days.
12) Sadly, at the current pace Quebec is projected to cross the 10,000 (!) #COVID19 death threshold by Sunday. On Tuesday, the province added another 36 fatalities and Montreal declared six for a death toll of 4,333. End of thread. Please limit your social contacts.
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