COVID-19 on P.E.I.: What's happening Tuesday, July 7

P.E.I. Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Heather Morrison is now strongly recommendingmasks should be worn more often to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

The changed advice is based on new evidence from around the world about how the coronavirus spreads, she said.In time we will become more comfortable with wearing masks, she said.

On another topic, Morrison said the July 3opening of the Atlantic bubble has made for busy times at the province's points of entry. The policy allows residents of the fourAtlantic provinces to travel among them without self-isolating for two weeks.

Over the weekend, Morrison said,5,719 vehicles crossed the Confederation Bridge and 794 vehicles arrived on P.E.I. by ferry. There were 164 arrivals at the Charlottetown airport.

She congratulated the teams working at the provincial borders for keeping traffic flowing smoothly.

Morrison also noted there have been some updates to guidance documents.

She said cinemas have submitted operational plans that have been approved, and she expects they will be opening soon.

The distance between brass instrument players has been reduced to two metres. In sports, one-day tournaments are allowed so long as total numbers don't exceed gathering limits.

There are relatively few activities that are not allowed with some modification now, she said.

Other COVID-19 news

Earlier Tuesday, Premier Dennis King said the recent Maritime outbreak might have been prevented with better co-ordination between provincial and federal authorities.

P.E.I.'s Official Opposition is calling on the province to create a memorandum of understanding that clearly lays outthe shared responsibilities among the four Atlantic provinces withregardsto COVID-19 and the regional bubble.

The spring lobster season on P.E.I. ended July 4after a late start on May 15, in a year when fishermen faced low prices and catch limits due to a shortage of labour in processing plants. But with demand growing locally and nationally, people in the industry hope for a rebound by next year.

COVID-19 didn't have much of an impact on P.E.I.'s bioscience sector. The sector continues to grow, and is building a new 20,000-square-foot facility to meet the demand.

Strawberry U-picks have begun to open up on P.E.I., but they must adhere to the government'sCOVID-19 guidelines.

The new cases bring P.E.I.'s COVID-19 total to 32, with 27 considered recovered.

Also in the news

• The testing station for COVID-19 at Confederation Bridge and the ferry terminal havebeen shut down, and truckers want themback.
• With many traditional avenues for fundraising shut down, two P.E.I. women are finding new ways to raise $60,000 for their churches.
• Prince Edward Island reported no new cases of COVID-19 Monday, but close contacts of the five cases announced on the weekend are being monitored closely, Morrison said in a news briefing.
• Contact tracing is underway in connection with cases of COVID-19 on P.E.I. that appear to have originated with a man now in Nova Scotia who had recently been in the U.S.

Further resources

• Here isinformation for livingwith the COVID-19 pandemic on P.E.I. including information on government relief programs, physical distancing measures, and essential health services.
• Here is achart tracking COVID-19 numbers and a timeline of COVID-19-related events on P.E.I.

More COVID-19 stories from CBC P.E.I.