1) Montreal posted 29 new #COVID cases Tuesday even though Quebec is screening far fewer people for the #pandemic illness. In contrast, Toronto recorded five cases as Ontario tests three to four times as much. In this thread, I'll focus on hot spots of community transmission.

2) For days now, Montreal’s long-term care centres and seniors’ residences haven’t declared any new #COVID infections. The number of active cases in those institutions stands at 40, down from 50 on Monday. But the #coronavirus is still circulating in communities across the city.

3) In the chart below by the Montreal public health department, community transmission is dropping overall. But it’s up slightly in absolute numbers in two densely populated boroughs: Plateau Mont-Royal and downtown Ville-Marie. This is something that needs to be monitored.

4) In Ville-Marie, the chart below shows only community transmission of #COVID19 in the downtown borough. Are the few downtown residents who’ve contracted the #coronavirus picking it up at work, in apartment buildings or condo towers, while shopping or in bars? We don’t know yet.

5) The chart below of Plateau Mont-Royal reveals the extent to which its #COVID curve has been flattened. But in the past few days, there’s been a small uptick in cases, almost exclusively in the community. Authorities haven’t explained or don't know where individuals caught it.

6) Undoubtedly, the #pandemic is mostly under control in Montreal, as the graphic below demonstrates dramatically. It’s thanks to the collective efforts of Montrealers in respecting #PhysicalDistancing and staying mostly at home that the number of infections has plummeted.

7) Initially, the #coronavirus spread in the west end of Montreal before engulfing the long-term care centres across the city. On Tuesday, we still see evidence of this highly contagious pathogen in the community, underscoring the importance of following public health measures.

8) Although hospitalizations are dropping each day, the city nonetheless reported 15 #COVID deaths on Tuesday. By comparison, Toronto last declared such a fatality on June 25. Montreal’s death toll of 3,376 serves as a grim reminder of the #pandemic's continuing lethal presence.

9) It’s in this context that Premier @francoislegault is to be commended for finally making face coverings mandatory for public transit as of July 13. Still, Montreal Mayor @Val_Plante should follow Toronto’s lead in also making masks mandatory in all indoor public spaces.

10) Quebec’s newly appointed health minister, @cdube_sante, is to be praised as well for finally allowing #COVID tests for all Quebecers, even if they don’t have any symptoms. Given that bars have reopened downtown and in the Plateau, testing is as vital as ever. End of thread.