MONTREAL — Quebec's Nunavik region moved into lockdown on Wednesday, as more than half the northern territory's 14 Inuit communities were dealing with community spread of COVID-19.
"It is just a matter of time until Omicron will spread in all communities," read a message on the Facebook page of the Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services, referring to the highly transmissible mutation of the novel coronavirus.
A 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew is in effect across the region, which spans the northern third of the province. Schools and daycares remain open, but all non-essential public places are closed and private indoor gatherings are banned.
Health officials reported 28 new cases on Tuesday in the region, which had 260 active infections.
Meanwhile, Quebec on Wednesday reported a rise of eight hospitalizations linked to the disease — the lowest daily increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations since Dec. 17. Officials said 88 more people died of COVID-19.
The Health Department said 3,425 people were in hospital, after 359 patients were admitted in the past 24 hours and 351 were discharged. It said there were 285 people in intensive care, a drop of four from the day before.
Officials reported 6,123 new COVID-19 cases based on about 34,700 tests, 13.5 per cent of which came back positive. They said 110,035 doses of vaccine were administered in the previous 24 hours.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 19, 2022.
———
This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Facebook and Canadian Press News Fellowship.
The Canadian Press
