1) Quebec now appears to be at a worrying turning point in the #pandemic, with #COVID19 outbreaks fast occurring in multiple settings, with clusters of cases causing other flare-ups in a domino effect. In this thread, I will try to explain the significance of this pivotal moment.

2) The first wave of the #pandemic from March to May hit Montreal predominantly, with outlying regions relatively unaffected. Now, the Quebec City area and other regions are reporting most of the flare-ups while the highly contagious #coronavirus smoulders in the metropolis.

3) During the first wave, the #pandemic rampaged through Quebec’s elderly population, concentrated in long-term care centres and seniors’ residences. Now the wave is rippling through younger age groups in bars, and as it’s increasingly becoming clear, among students, too.

4) Quebec City officials revealed Wednesday that at least three #COVID19 cases among students were traced to the massive karaoke bar outbreak at Le Kirouac. Thus, bar patrons in a crowded venue contracted the virus, then inadvertently infected children attending packed schools.

5) Potentially, this is how a second wave could start, long before anyone witnesses a surge in #COVID19 hospitalizations. Six Quebec City bars are under epidemiological surveillance, raising questions as to why the government is still allowing drinking establishments to operate.

6) Dr. Jacques Girard, director of the Quebec City public health department, used the term “explosive cocktail” to describe the contagious domino effect. Meanwhile, a daycare in the Eastern Townships is grappling with its first #COVID19 outbreak, with five children infected.

7) The outbreak at Les amis du globe daycare confirms the trend I’ve reported regarding the #COVID19 increase among preschoolers soon after those facilities reopened to full capacity. The daycare outbreak is also taking place amid a spike in cases in the Eastern Townships.

8) Over in Terrebonne Wednesday, 40 students were sent home in a preventive quarantine after a youth tested positive. The Terrebonne incident brings to nearly 40 (!) the number of schools affected, not by outbreaks per se, but as a result of #COVID-positive students or teachers.

9) Perhaps Quebecers now know why Premier François Legault was compelled to hold a news conference Monday to decry the “relâchement” among people flouting #PhysicalDistancing. Yet the government’s response was to announce Tuesday that public boxing matches will soon be permitted.

10) In Montreal, authorities posted 32 new #COVID19 cases Wednesday, as the orange line in the chart below makes clear. That number would likely be slightly higher if Quebec screened more people for the #coronavirus and met its 14,000-a-day testing goal.

11) Under the circumstances, it’s time Quebec made a bold gesture to emphasize the gravity of this turning point, either closing bars or reducing the size of 250-person gatherings. Not doing so could be misinterpreted by some that this situation is not serious. End of thread.