The city of Montreal has declared a local state of emergency in an attempt to curb the spread of the Omicron variant of coronavirus.
Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante, who recently announced that she had tested positive for COVID-19, announced it Tuesday at a virtual press conference.
Cases are rising sharply across the province, with Quebec reporting yet another daily record of 5,043 cases. Montreal alone accounted for 1,656 of them.
Plant said the state of emergency will allow the city to respond quickly to a changing situation.
“We will be able now, with the state of emergency, to be proactive. We are more responsible, if I may say so, in some decisions,” she said.
Plant said the state of emergency will be used to quickly provide protective equipment for the city’s essential workers and prepare sites and facilities to accommodate Montreal’s homeless population.
“With the number of cases increasing with the Omicron variant, we want to be ready if, for example, there is an outbreak in a shelter,” she said. “We’ll have to isolate people, we need more beds, more places.”
Plant also announced that the city will double the funds to address homelessness in Wednesday’s budget. She said the city is currently missing about 100 shelters.
WATCH | Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante talks about her experience with COVID-19:
Valérie Plante says she is improving after receiving COVID-19. The mayor of Montreal issued a plea to citizens to be vigilant during a virtual press conference on Tuesday. 1:16
Previous state of emergency was lifted in August
This marks Montreal’s second state of emergency during the pandemic.
The city had previously declared one at the start of the pandemic, but let it expire in August, citing high vaccination rates and the implementation of the vaccine passport system.
Plant said she does not regret letting the state of emergency lapse, and said it should not be used as a permanent solution.
Under section 42 of the Provincial Civil Protection Act, a municipality may declare a local state of emergency in all or part of its territory when a major disaster, real or imminent, requires extraordinary measures to protect human life.
The Quebec government also declared a state of emergency at the start of the pandemic, but has maintained it ever since, despite criticism that officials refused to relinquish their emergency powers.
Quebec Prime Minister François Legault tweeted on Tuesday that the government was considering tightening restrictions further, just one day after announcing comprehensive measures that suddenly closed schools, bars and cinemas.
Like many places in the world, Quebec faces very difficult choices.
What governs us is the ability to treat or not treat sick Quebecers in the coming weeks. We will get back to you tomorrow with our decisions.
When asked about the possibility that Quebec could reintroduce a curfew, Plante said she had not spoken to her provincial counterpart about it.
“If the government of Quebec and public health choose to impose a curfew, they must consider our most vulnerable: those who experience homelessness,” she said.
Last winter, Raphaël Napa André, a homeless man from the Innu community of Matimekush-Lac John, was found frozen to death in a chemical toilet in front of a shelter that had been forced to close its doors at night.
“We want to ensure that a curfew will not be punished [the homeless population] further.”
Plant performs ‘better’ after the COVID-19 diagnosis
In a conversation with reporters from her home, Plante said she still had low energy after her diagnosis of COVID-19, but generally felt that her condition was improving.
She hoped her case could be a warning to Montreal residents.
“I think I’m a good example of someone who did everything that needed to be done, respected all the rules and everything, and just got hit by the variant,” she said.
“That’s why I speak with experience, with my heart, when I tell Montrealers to be very vigilant. It’s a very, very contagious variant.”
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