1) The Résidence Herron nursing home, where staff deserted the elderly occupants early in the #pandemic last March, went into lockdown again Sunday after an employee tested positive for #COVID19. In this thread, I will examine the impact of the second wave on eldercare centres.

2) Unlike last March, the Herron now has a full complement of staff. None of the residents has tested positive for the #coronavirus, but all are back in their rooms as a precaution. Still, #COVID19 outbreaks have flared up in 18 other eldercare homes in the province.

3) In the past 24 hours alone, a total of two dozen residents of long-term care centres and seniors’ residents have contracted #COVID19 across Quebec: in Laval, Pointe-Claire, Saint-Eustache, Saint-Jérôme, Brossard, La Tuque and in the Gaspé.

4) Small #COVID19 outbreaks are also erupting again in hospitals, too: at the Lakeshore General in Pointe-Claire, at Hôpital du Saint-Sacrement in Quebec City, at the Centre hospitalier régional du Grand-Portage in Rivière-du-Loup and at Hôpital de Granby last week.

5) In contrast with the first wave when schools were locked down, the virus is now spreading in them — with limited precautions in place. Nearly 17% of Quebec’s schools now have at least one student or employee who has tested positive, according to http://covidecolesquebec.org .

6) Meanwhile, Montreal posted a staggering 375 #COVID19 cases Sunday, up from 272 the day before. The last time the metropolis reported a single-day tally that was higher was in mid-May, just after the peak of the first wave. See the rising orange line in the chart below.

7) Montreal’s rolling seven-day average rose to 113.04 cases per million population from 98.13 the day before. Crossing the 100-case daily threshold means the city could be declared a red zone, but the government has decided to use additional criteria before making that call.

8) At the neighborhood level, the chart below shows that the centre of the city, Montreal North and the east end continue to drive community transmission of the #coronavirus. People in these areas are working-class and can’t afford to stay home.

9) More than six months after the World Health Organization declared #COVID19 a pandemic, 5,825 Quebecers have lost their lives to date. Nearly 72,000 Quebecers have contracted the disease, with many suffering from lingering and debilitating complications.

10) So here we are: Less than three months after the last wave ended, Quebec has now been jolted into a second one, perhaps a year before a vaccine can be widely distributed to Quebecers. Please keep that in mind as you practice #PhysicalDistancing and wear a mask. End of thread.