New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs addresses media during the Thursday, Oct. 8 COVID-19 provincial briefing, confirming masks will become mandatory in most indoor public places effective midnight Friday, October 9. (Source: GNB YouTube)
The Moncton region may be moving to the yellow phase of recovery but the Campbellton area is still under a modified orange level.
Premier Blaine Higgs reminded New Brunswickers of the impact this outbreak is having on so many people in our province.
“We cannot be cavalier about this situation. Doing so could quickly lead to our health-care system becoming overwhelmed. I know the measures in place in Zone 5 are restrictive and the additional rule of a single household bubble will have a major impact, but we cannot take the risk of allowing COVID-19 to continue to spread. I am hopeful that, by following the rules, Zone 5 will be able to get back on track quickly,” he says.
Higgs says the idea behind smaller household bubbles is to reduce the spread and make contact tracing easier.
“And if you are diagnosed you need to disclose as much information as you can. If we’re able to trace then we can know where it came from and can continue to move in a positive direction, but when the unknowns are there, it makes it very difficult and almost impossible to maintain and return to a reduced level or emergency,” he says.
Higgs added that public safety officers will be doing compliance checks at businesses in Zone 5, making sure they have and are adhering to their operational safety plans.
These officers will continue to focus on educating the public, but if people refuse to comply with the rules, they will face penalties.
