Nova Scotia reported 522 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday. They include 382 cases in Central Zone, 59 cases in Eastern Zone, 38 cases in Northern Zone and 43 cases in Western Zone. Nine people are in hospital including three in ICU. Nova Scotia Health is reporting an outbreak at St. Martha’s Regional Hospital in Antigonish, with less than five patients. As a precaution, Nova Scotia Health is testing identified close contacts. Testing will be made available for all staff and doctors on site who want to get tested. Nova Scotia is again tightening restrictions on public gatherings after large amounts of COVID-19 cases connected to the Omicron variant continue to be reported. Starting today, a series of measures introduced last week are being tightened including the limits for indoor and outdoor informal gatherings which are being reduced from 20 to 10 people. However, there is no ban on in-province travel and no isolation requirements for out-of-province travellers like those announced in Newfoundland and Labrador and in P-E-I.
P-E-I has announced isolation requirements for visitors in an attempt to limit the spread of COVID-19 and the Omicron variant. Premier Dennis King says beginning tomorrow at 8 a-m anyone arriving on the Island from out of province will have to isolate for four days and will require two negative rapid tests to leave isolation. King says all bars and restaurants in the province will also be required to stop serving customers at 11 p-m. The province announced 29 new cases of COVID-19 yesterday, bringing the total number of active infections in PEI to 112.
Nova Scotia’s economy is showing signs of recovery, but the province’s Finance minister is warning the pandemic-related uncertainty may persist through the end of the fiscal year. An update released Tuesday projects total revenue to be 12.8-billion dollars, which is up 1-billion dollars from the budget tabled in March. The province is also forecasting a surplus position of more than 108.2-million dollars for this fiscal year — a sharp turnaround from the 585-million-dollar deficit projected in the March budget. Finance Minister Allan MacMaster says employment is above pre-pandemic levels, but growth is uneven and several sectors remain impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Halifax Regional Police are investigating after a young boy died after a shooting Tuesday in Dartmouth. Police got the call shortly after 4:00pm on Windmill Road. The child was rushed to hospital, but died later of his injuries. No details regarding the incident have been released. Police are looking to the public for any information they may have on the shooting, or video footage of the nearby area.
The public consultation has begun for the proposed “transformation” of the effluent treatment facility at the shuttered Northern Pulp mill in Pictou County. The province says Nova Scotians have until January 31st to comment on the project. The government says it is also consulting directly with the Mi’kmaq. After the terms of reference are finalized, the company has up to two years to submit its environmental assessment report for the proposed project.
