By Canadian Press

Trudeau says pandemic ‘really sucks,’ and that Christmas gatherings are up in the air

Oct 27, 2020 | 9:51 AM

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the global COVID-19 pandemic “really sucks,” and could jeopardize large gatherings with friends and family over Christmas on the heels of a toned-down Thanksgiving season.

Acknowledging frustrations around partial lockdowns and scrapped trick-or-treating plans in some parts of the country, Trudeau says Canadians need to gird themselves for a “tough winter ahead.”

The prime minister is encouraging residents to continue to follow the advice of local health authorities, despite frustrations over conflicting information on Halloween as well as COVID-19 testing requirements for students.

Trudeau’s remarks come as Canada verges on topping 10,000 deaths due to COVID-19 and the pandemic’s second wave continues to wash over the country.

Ontario is reporting 827 new cases of COVID-19 today, and four new deaths due to the virus, pushing the total number of fatalities to 9,996 as of late Tuesday morning.

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Quebec, where residents in its biggest cities will have to live with partial lockdowns for at least another four weeks, is reporting 963 new cases of COVID-19 and 19 more deaths linked to the novel coronavirus.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 27, 2020.

The Canadian Press