Ottawa residents enjoy 'perfect' holiday Monday amid fourth wave warnings
After missing out last summer, a yearly tradition was revived on a Westboro beach Monday afternoon.
“It’s the first long weekend where you feel kind of normal, but it also makes you appreciate what we took for granted,” Stephen McDermott says.
The grandfather was able to take his two grandchildren swimming, something they had been doing every year until the pandemic. Since then, holidays were spent gathering virtually.
“We come here every year to swim and make sand castles, and just play around,” Jayden, McDermott’s nine-year-old grandson explained.
For the foursome, the Civic holiday was a chance to get back to rituals.
“I hardly saw them for the last 16-18 months, so it’s great to have them out here,” McDermott says.
Across Ottawa, residents made the most of the holiday, gathering at the city’s parks and beaches.
“The weather is absolutely perfect for a nice lazy August holiday, what a way to celebrate the Civic holiday,” Rob Collier says.
The reprieve comes as cases of COVID-19 continue to slowly trend upward across the province.
“There’s still millions of Canadians that aren’t vaccinated,” says Dr. Isaac Bogoch, a member of Ontario’s Vaccination Task Force.
“This is a very transmissible virus, especially the Delta variant. It should come to no one’s surprise that we’re going to see a rise in cases as we give this virus an opportunity to be transmitted.”
Despite warnings of a potential looming fourth wave from the country’s top doctor, Ontario is edging closer to moving past Step Three of the reopening and dropping a number of pandemic restrictions.
On Sunday, Quebec further eased restrictions, allowing bars to closer later and arenas and large venues to host up to 15,000 people.
“I love that. There was so many months we were stuck inside and now that it’s loosening up I can come in person to work here,” Rani Ganuluri, who works in Gatineau, says.
Elsewhere, the Delta variant is rampaging across the United Kingdom and the United States. America’s top doctor, Dr. Anthony Fauci warning that more “pain and suffering” are ahead.
Bogoch says Canada shouldn’t expect to be spared the same concerns.
“We’re watching that happen in just about every jurisdiction in the world that’s opening up, Canada’s going to be no different,” he notes.
One reason for hope: Canada’s strong vaccination effort. The country is now leading Israel, the UK and the USA in percentage of people fully vaccinated.
Some Ottawa residents say it’s due to those numbers that they’re not overly concerned.
“[We should] just be mindful of the fact that we’re not quite there yet, in terms of being fully free of the pandemic,” Jack Wilson says.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'A beautiful soul': Funeral held for baby boy killed in wrong-way crash on Highway 401
A funeral was held on Wednesday for a three-month-old boy who died after being involved in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 in Whitby last week.
'Sophisticated' cyberattacks detected on B.C. government networks, premier says
There has been a "sophisticated" cybersecurity breach detected on B.C. government networks, Premier David Eby confirmed Wednesday evening.
Police handcuff man trying to enter Drake's Toronto mansion
Toronto police say a man was taken into custody outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion Wednesday afternoon after he tried to gain access to the residence.
Biden says he will stop sending bombs and artillery shells to Israel if they launch major invasion of Rafah
U.S. President Joe Biden said for the first time Wednesday he would halt shipments of American weapons to Israel, which he acknowledged have been used to kill civilians in Gaza, if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a major invasion of the city of Rafah.
Rookie goalie Arturs Silovs to start for Canucks in Game 1 vs. Oilers
Rookie goalie Arturs Silovs will start in net for the Canucks as Vancouver kicks off a second-round series against the Edmonton Oilers Wednesday night.
Nijjar murder suspect says he had Canadian study permit in immigration firm's video
One of the Indian nationals accused of murdering British Columbia Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar says in a social media video that he received a Canadian study permit with the help of an Indian immigration consultancy.
Pfizer agrees to settle more than 10K lawsuits over Zantac cancer risk: Bloomberg News
Pfizer has agreed to settle more than 10,000 lawsuits about cancer risks related to the now discontinued heartburn drug Zantac, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the deal.
Quebec premier defends new museum on Quebecois nation after Indigenous criticism
Quebec Premier Francois Legault is defending his comments about a new history museum after he was accused by a prominent First Nations group of trying to erase their history.
U.S. presidential candidate RFK Jr. had a brain worm, has recovered, campaign says
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a parasite in his brain more than a decade ago, but has fully recovered, his campaign said, after the New York Times reported about the ailment.