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UPDATE, JANUARY 6, 2021 @ 6:05pm: It's confirmed, Montreal will see a nightly curfew from 8pm to 5am the next day every day from January 9 to February 8.
The Quebec provincial government is expected to announce a second complete lockdown this evening at 5pm—sometimes referred to as the 'third' lockdown following the shutdown of certain business like restaurants and bars in October 2020—and a curfew is coming with it.
According to a report from La Presse, a curfew for 8pm will be instated for the first four weeks, beginning on January 9 and ending on February 6. That end date is likely to be dependent on a noticeable decrease in cases during that time.
The most likely scenario for a curfew in Quebec is where it begins every night at 8pm. The police will have the authority to fine offenders, according to the Deputy Premier of Québec Geneviève Guilbault. That means Montrealers need to make sure their affairs, errands and visits (if allowed at all) are sorted out and finished by that time, and can expect to be questioned by police is outside after that time.
Essential services like grocery stores, pharmacies, SQDCs, SAQs, and possibly restaurants will be asked to close earlier at 7pm or 7:30pm in order to allow employees to go home. The full details will come this evening.
While the curfew may seem extreme to some, measure like this have been implemented in Europe and in some parts of the United States.
Construction and manufacturing, unless deemed essential, is expected to close throughout the upcoming four weeks.
Premier François Legault, however, is expected to deem that elementary school students will return on January 18 and secondary school students on the following Monday, January 25. Full details are expected from the Quebec Minister of Education Jean-François Roberge on Thursday. The original restart date for schools was January 11.
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