Manitoba's top doctor and health minister say new health orders are necessary in light of climbing case numbers and concerns over the Omicron variant.
The new public health orders go into place at 12:00 a.m. Tuesday and will be in place for three weeks, expiring on Jan. 11.
Limits on household gatherings will be members of the household plus 10 people if everyone is vaccinated. If people are unvaccinated then the gathering will be limited to households plus five people. Roussin says that vaccination requirements do not apply to children under 12 years of age.
Faith-based gatherings will be limited to 50 per cent capacity where vaccinations are checked. In cases where vaccinations are not checked, the limits will be placed at 25 per cent capacity or 25 people, whichever is lower.
Places like movie theatres, gyms, museums, and licensed venues will now be restricted to 50 per cent capacity and continue to require proof of vaccination.
Sports tournaments will no longer be allowed while the new orders remain in place.
Indoor gatherings are restricted to 25 per cent capacity or 25 people, whichever is fewer.
Restaurants will serve seated people only and there will be a maximum of 10 people allowed per table.
Large indoor events such as sporting events will be limited to 50 per cent capacity.
"We need to delay the emergence of Omicron to give Manitobans time to get their third dose," Gordon says. "We must ask Manitobans to do more to reduce current COVID numbers."
"I come today with a message today I didn't want to convey," Roussin says, "and probably that we didn't want to hear."
The doctor stopped short of saying people should cancel their holiday plans but did reiterate that gatherings must follow the new orders. He also says that people should take their personal risk into consideration and if they are at a higher risk of severe outcomes then strongly consider altering their plans.
Manitoba isn't the only province to put in new health orders. Quebec caught some sports fans off guard on Thursday evening when the Montreal Canadiens played in an empty building. Ontario announced Friday new restrictions that will go into place 12:01 a.m. EST on Sunday, after 3,124 new cases of COVID-19 were announced in the province on Friday. Several other provinces have also announced new orders.
More to come