Colder weather and holidays bring new COVID-19 concerns, Tam warns

The fall will bring new risks in the COVID-19 pandemic, along with colder weather and indoor family holiday gatherings, Canada's chief public health officer has warnedat a time whendaily case counts continue to climb.

With the final long weekend of the summer season upon us, Dr. Theresa Tam said Friday that Canadians need to consider their own risk factors and the details of plans for any in-person gatherings with friends and family.

And they should be asking themselves some important questions, she said.

"Are you at high risk of developing serious complications if you become infected?" Tam asked rhetorically. "Or if you would have to self-isolate, would this seriously disrupt your upcoming plans?"

Knowing the people you're with does not protect you from catching the virus that causes the respiratory illness, Tam added. And Canadians need to consider whether people they live with are at high risk of contracting the virus, she said.

WATCH | Dr. Theresa Tam onlong weekend COVID-19 safety:

Tam talks long weekend COVID-19 safety

4 years ago

Duration 1:54

Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam offers advice on how to minimize the risk of catching or spreading COVID-19 this Labour Day weekend.

The warning comes as the number of new COVID-19 cases reported daily continues to trend upward.

"A key concern this past week has been the continuing increase in daily case counts. Although we are well below the almost 1,800 cases reported daily at the peak of the initial wave in early May, we have been seeing an increasing trend in this disease activity indicator," Tam said in a Saturday statement issued by the Public Health Agency of Canada.

"With 631 new cases reported across Canada yesterday, the most recent seven-day moving average now has us at 545 cases being reported daily. This exceeds the maximum number of daily cases reported during increased activity in mid-July."

Better prepared for fall, but concerns linger

The counts indicate that COVID-19 iscontinuing to spread and that safety measures must still be followed, the federal public health agency said, though it added that the case numbers remainmanageable for public health authorities.

After months of dealing with the novel coronavirus, government agencies, employers and individuals understand COVID-19 better now, so the situation Canadians are facing is different from the one in the spring when the disease first began to spread widely, Tam told reporters in Ottawa.

But there is renewed concern that the number of cases could still balloon out of control.

WATCH |Ontario Premier Doug Ford 'really concerned' aboutCOVID-19 cases in Brampton:

Doug Ford 'really concerned' about COVID-19 cases in Brampton

4 years ago

Duration 1:25

Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he's been attempting to get a hold of Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown to discuss possible measures needed to slow the spread of COVID-19 in the area.

In Ontario, Premier Doug Ford criticized hosts of backyard parties, whom he blamed for new cases in his province. On Friday, Ontario reported 148 new COVID-19 infections, nearly half of them in a suburban region just west of Toronto. The province reported 169 new cases on Saturday.

Tam said contagion in private settings is a major concern now, but at the same time, local health authorities will order fresh closures and reductions in public activities if they're needed to suppress new outbreaks. Those shouldn't be needed if people follow public health advice, she said.

Doctors, politicians urge caution

British Columbia's top doctor warned this week that there is the potential for an explosive spread of COVID-19 cases over the Labour Day long weekend.

Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry urged B.C. residents to choose smaller gatherings over larger ones over the weekend in a continuing effort to keep case numbers low.

"Choose to spend time with your household bubble instead of a group of strangers, and choose to use those layers of protection wherever you go," Henry said Thursday.

Quebec Premier Franois Legault declared Friday that the contagion was under control in his province, despite authorities there reporting more than 180 new COVID-19 infections for the second consecutive day. On Saturday, 175 new cases were reported in Quebec.

Still, Legault urged Quebecers to be prudent ahead of the long weekend.

"I am asking you not to let your guard down," he said.

Tam said downloading the government's COVID Alert app is one way to mitigate the risks of catching and spreading the illness unknowingly, although it is currently only operational in Ontario and Newfoundland and Labrador.

WATCH | Canada's top doctor on the federal COVID-19 app:

Dr Theresa Tam on COVID app's effectiveness in reducing the spread

4 years ago

Duration 2:56

Canada's chief public health officer spoke with the CBC's Tom Parry on Friday.

Quebec has said it does not plan to use the app but announced Friday that it will launch its own alerting system.

Health Minister Christian Dub told a Montreal news conference the system will allow regions to be designated by zone, depending on the number of COVID-19 cases found in those regions.

Details of the system were to be revealed Tuesday, although Dub compared it to the warning notice boards already found in certain parks in Quebec.

As of Saturday, Canada had recorded 131,124confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 9,141deaths.