Nova Scotia Declares A State Of Emergency

USPA NEWS - On Sunday, March 22nd, Nova Scotia's Premier Stephen McNeil declared a state of emergency due to the Covid 19 virus. Just 24 hours later Premier McNeil announced that there are 13 new cases of Covid 19 in the province bringing the total to 41. The total confirmed cases in Canada is now 2020, which includes 548 new cases today. The breakdown of cases by province is as follows: British Columbia 472, Alberta 259, Saskatchewan 52, Manitoba 20, Ontario 503, Quebec 628, New Brunswick 17, Prince Edward Island 3, Nova Scotia 41 and Newfoundland 9.

Yesterday, when Premier McNeil announced the state of emergency for the province he had this to say to Nova Scotians, "I cannot allow a certain level of Nova Scotians to disregard the order of the chief medical officer or law enforcement when it comes to ensuring we protect the health and safety of all Nova Scotians, and that is why we were forced to do what we are doing today. Over the weekend I saw and heard of far too many incidents of people gathering, blatantly disregarding the social and physical distance rules of staying six feet or two meters apart. We are dealing with a deadly virus and this behavior is unacceptable." Today during a press conference held by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who himself is in isolation, he had this to say, "Physical distancing measures may be taking a toll but they cannot stop. If you choose to ignore that advice you´re not just putting yourself at risk, you´re putting others at risk. Enough is enough. Go home and stay home. This is what we all need to be doing and we´re going to make sure this happens.“ These words come ahead of the Prime Ministers' plan to pass the Covid 19 Financial Aid Package when Parliament is resuming Tuesday for an emergency session.

How does the state of emergency in Nova Scotia affect the average Nova Scotian?  Here is what we know at this time. A lot of the new restrictions are related to travel. Non-essential travel between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick has now been restricted. Today police were posted at the Nova Scotia-New Brunswick border to enforce the ban. Anyone returning to Nova Scotia from anywhere else in Canada is now required to self-isolate for 14 days upon return. The automatic self-isolation rule applies to both land, air and sea travel. These new restrictions do not apply to trucks, cross border workers and others that are considered essential service providers. Citizens are still able to go out for walks in their own neighborhood while practicing the 2-meter social distancing rule, but all provincial and municipal parks are closed. There is also a  ban on gatherings of more than 5 people. Anyone caught in a park or on a beach will be charged with trespassing and could have their vehicle towed. The Premier assures people that grocery shopping, picking up medication and banking is allowed providing that proper social-distancing protocol is being practiced. Malls and liquor stores will remain open, but there will be a limit on the number of people that will be permitted in an establishment at any given time. Shoppers are expected to purchase what they need and depart the area. Transit service has been reduced with restrictions on the number of passengers on board the bus at any given time and transit fares have been eliminated so passengers can enter and exit the vehicle through the rear door. It should be noted that with the state of emergency in place, that police now have the authority to enforce these regulations and issue fines to those who choose to ignore these rules. It is also expected that when the Federal Government enacts legislation this week, there will be more restrictions that will be implemented nationwide.