Trudeau says pandemic ‘really sucks,’ Canada passes a grim COVID-19 milestone

By The Canadian Press

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the global COVID-19 pandemic “really sucks,” and could jeopardize large gatherings with friends and family over Christmas on the heels of a toned-down Thanksgiving season.

Acknowledging frustrations around partial lockdowns and scrapped trick-or-treating plans in some parts of the country, Trudeau says Canadians need to gird themselves for a “tough winter ahead.”

The prime minister is encouraging residents to continue to follow the advice of local health authorities, despite frustrations over conflicting information on Halloween as well as COVID-19 testing requirements for students.

Trudeau’s remarks come as Canada topped 10,000 deaths due to COVID-19 and the pandemic’s second wave continues to wash over the country.

Alberta reported another two deaths from COVID-19 Tuesday to bring the national tally to 10,001.

Ontario reported 827 new cases of COVID-19, and four new deaths due to the virus, while Quebec — where residents in its biggest cities will have to live with partial lockdowns for at least another four weeks — reported 963 new cases of COVID-19 and 19 more deaths linked to the novel coronavirus.

Letting our guard down will only lead to more cases of COVID-19 in Canada, said Canada’s deputy chief public health officer, Dr. Howard Njoo.

“Now we have a much better understanding of how the virus behaves. Our challenge now is in adapting our behaviour to not give this virus any opportunity to spread,” he adde.

Canada crossed the threshold of 5,000 deaths on May 12, a little over two months after the first death was reported.

COVID-19 case counts slowed across the country through the summer, but have taken a big jump in many areas this fall, with new daily highs regularly being set through Central and Western Canada.

Care homes have been particularly hard hit with seniors at the greatest risk of severe forms of the infection.

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