'Some structural damage' from wildfire near Fort Nelson, B.C., mayor confirms
More than one home has been damaged or lost due to a massive wildfire outside of the B.C. community of Fort Nelson, the mayor confirmed Wednesday.
Canadians should carefully weigh any future decisions on taking foreign trips even though the federal government has lifted a global advisory asking them to avoid non-essential travel, health officials cautioned Friday.
Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada's chief public health officer, said the government would be providing more specific information about the severity of COVID-19 in various countries to help Canadians decide where they should consider travelling.
"The pandemic is very much alive. There are definitely still risks involved in travel," Tam said Friday. She said it was too soon for the government to give a "blanket" recommendation on all travel, but said being fully vaccinated and assessing the level of the pandemic in any potential destination are key.
"Now is not the time to just freely go wherever."
The government announced Thursday that it was lifting the global advisory asking Canadians to avoid non-essential travel outside the country, but it was continuing to advise against travel on cruise ships.
The global travel advisory was put in place in March 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
Dr. Howard Njoo, the deputy chief public health officer, said Friday that Canadians should ask themselves a series of questions before they plan to travel abroad.
Njoo urged Canadians assess the "epidemiological situation" of COVID-19 in any potential travel destination "because there is great variation between different countries and even within countries, as we've seen here in Canada."
They should also look at the level of vaccination rates in those country "because that's an indication of what community transmission in that region may be."
Canadian travellers should also ask themselves what they actually want to do when they get to another country. "For example, if you're going to go on solitary nature hikes, that's one thing. But if you're thinking of going on a cruise with a lot of people in an enclosed space, that's another thing," said Njoo.
Canadians should also weigh the "culture for individual protection measures" in where they are thinking of travelling, such as whether masks are commonly worn, or not, he said.
"We know that the situation is not the same in all parts of the world. There are regions in the world that are still suffering from the severe consequences of COVID-19," he said.
The government of Canada's website now shows advisories for each destination country, as it did prior to the pandemic.
It also urges Canadians to ensure they are fully vaccinated against the novel coronavirus before travelling abroad, and to stay informed of the COVID-19 situation at their destination.
The move comes as the federal government announced it had reached an agreement with the provinces on a new national vaccine passport for domestic and international travel.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Thursday that provinces and territories have agreed to adjust their own vaccine passports to give them the same look, feel and security measures based on the international standard for so-called Smart health cards.
Several have already started distributing proof-of-vaccination documents, including Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Quebec, Ontario, Nunavut, Saskatchewan, Northwest Territories and Yukon.
Canada opened its borders last month to non-essential international travellers who have received both doses of a Health Canada-approved COVID-19 vaccine, and to fully vaccinated travellers from the United States in August.
The U.S. government recently announced that its land borders will reopen to non-essential Canadian travellers on Nov. 8.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2021
More than one home has been damaged or lost due to a massive wildfire outside of the B.C. community of Fort Nelson, the mayor confirmed Wednesday.
A warning from a Saskatoon driver about using your fast-food app while in the drive-thru line — a trip to get some free lunch cost him a lot more than he bargained for.
An 'unrepentant' YouTuber has been ordered to pay $350,000 in damages as compensation for a 'relentless' campaign of defamation waged online against a business owner and his company, the B.C. Supreme Court has ruled.
Chief Robert Michell says relief isn't the right word to describe his reaction as the search begins for unmarked graves at the site of a former residential school he attended in northern British Columbia.
While it's unclear what these closures might mean for the 27 restaurants in Canada, Red Lobster is expected to file for bankruptcy protection in the U.S. this month.
A man from B.C.'s Lower Mainland has been sentenced to four years behind bars after shooting a sex worker in the back during a drug-fuelled 43rd birthday.
Nearly six dozen dogs were seized from a home Wednesday morning by the Winnipeg Humane Society. It is the largest known seizure of animals in the city’s history.
Of the $40-million Aiden Pleterski was handed over two years, documents show he invested just over one per cent and instead spent $15.9 million on "his personal lifestyle." The 25-year-old Oshawa, Ont. man was arrested and charged with fraud and money laundering on Tuesday.
A man with a long record of dangerous driving told investigators he smoked marijuana oil and took prescription drugs hours before he sideswiped a bus, killing eight Mexican farmworkers and injuring dozens more, according to an arrest report unsealed Wednesday.
When Adam Kirschner wrote 'Slap Shot,' he never imagined the song would be embraced by his favourite team.
A team is ready to help an entangled North Atlantic right whale in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
A $200 reward is being offered by a North Vancouver family for the safe return of their beloved chicken, Snowflake.
Two daughters and a mother were reunited online 40 years later thanks to a DNA kit and a Zoom connection despite living on three separate continents and speaking different languages.
Mother's Day can be a difficult occasion for those who have lost or are estranged from their mom.
YES Theatre Young Company opened its acclaimed kids’ show, One Small Step, at Sudbury Theatre Centre on Saturday.
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.