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| Nova Scotia Mourns In an Uneasy Time | Nova Scotia Mourns In an Uneasy Time |
| (about 1 month later) | |
| For Canada and particularly Nova Scotia, it was a terrible week in the midst of an uneasy time. A village that was once best known for a dance hall became a scene of horror and the starting point for the most deadly mass shooting in the country’s history: 22 victims plus the killer. | For Canada and particularly Nova Scotia, it was a terrible week in the midst of an uneasy time. A village that was once best known for a dance hall became a scene of horror and the starting point for the most deadly mass shooting in the country’s history: 22 victims plus the killer. |
| As is often the case after such terrible events, Dan Bilefsky, Catherine Porter and I set out to memorialize at least some of the people who died. The large number of people in this case made it impossible to write as much as I would have liked to about each of them. They included a Mountie who was a mentor to young women, a family of three, a woman out for her walk and a widely loved elementary schoolteacher. | As is often the case after such terrible events, Dan Bilefsky, Catherine Porter and I set out to memorialize at least some of the people who died. The large number of people in this case made it impossible to write as much as I would have liked to about each of them. They included a Mountie who was a mentor to young women, a family of three, a woman out for her walk and a widely loved elementary schoolteacher. |
| [Read: Mourning Victims of Canada’s Worst Mass Shooting Must Come at a Safe Distance] | [Read: Mourning Victims of Canada’s Worst Mass Shooting Must Come at a Safe Distance] |
| The coronavirus pandemic has only added to the tragedy. Grieving and providing comfort should be tactile events that involve many people coming together. Catherine has written about what the current restrictions mean for Nova Scotians and Canadians mourning last weekend’s losses. | The coronavirus pandemic has only added to the tragedy. Grieving and providing comfort should be tactile events that involve many people coming together. Catherine has written about what the current restrictions mean for Nova Scotians and Canadians mourning last weekend’s losses. |
| “There is no template for this,” one of the organizers of Friday’s online vigil to remember the victims told Catherine. “We all feel so helpless.” | “There is no template for this,” one of the organizers of Friday’s online vigil to remember the victims told Catherine. “We all feel so helpless.” |
| [Read: When Hugs Can Kill: Mourning Nova Scotia’s Mass Shooting in a Pandemic] | [Read: When Hugs Can Kill: Mourning Nova Scotia’s Mass Shooting in a Pandemic] |
| Funerals, of course, can’t go on as usual. The authorities in Newfoundland recently traced 143 cases of Covid-19 to a single funeral home in St. John’s. | Funerals, of course, can’t go on as usual. The authorities in Newfoundland recently traced 143 cases of Covid-19 to a single funeral home in St. John’s. |
| My family faced the question of how to replace the traditional funeral last month when my aunt, Frances Cornwall, died of causes not related to the virus here in Ottawa. A World War II veteran who performed in England with the Canadian Army Show, she was buried in a village near Windsor, Ontario. Our solution was, in effect, to delay. There was a private burial service with four family members. (I stayed in Ottawa). Like so much these days, a larger commemoration will come whenever the virus allows. | My family faced the question of how to replace the traditional funeral last month when my aunt, Frances Cornwall, died of causes not related to the virus here in Ottawa. A World War II veteran who performed in England with the Canadian Army Show, she was buried in a village near Windsor, Ontario. Our solution was, in effect, to delay. There was a private burial service with four family members. (I stayed in Ottawa). Like so much these days, a larger commemoration will come whenever the virus allows. |
| Catherine appeared Friday on The Daily, The Times’s podcast, with the moving story of how Wayne Irwin, a former United Church of Canada minister, commemorated the life of Flora May Litt-Irwin, who died from causes not related to the coronavirus in late March. | Catherine appeared Friday on The Daily, The Times’s podcast, with the moving story of how Wayne Irwin, a former United Church of Canada minister, commemorated the life of Flora May Litt-Irwin, who died from causes not related to the coronavirus in late March. |
| Along with friends and family members, Mr. Irwin created an online service that included elements of a wake, while Zoom provided an alternative to visitations. | Along with friends and family members, Mr. Irwin created an online service that included elements of a wake, while Zoom provided an alternative to visitations. |
| [Listen: A New Way to Mourn] | [Listen: A New Way to Mourn] |
| As Nova Scotia focused on grieving, more details about the nightmare that began last Saturday night emerged. We learned on Friday that it was preceded by a dispute that led to the killer’s partner being tied up. She escaped, hid in the woods overnight and was able to warn police that he was impersonating an officer and driving one of his four replica police cars. | As Nova Scotia focused on grieving, more details about the nightmare that began last Saturday night emerged. We learned on Friday that it was preceded by a dispute that led to the killer’s partner being tied up. She escaped, hid in the woods overnight and was able to warn police that he was impersonating an officer and driving one of his four replica police cars. |
| [Read: Police Seek Motive for Canada Killing Spree by Denture Fitter] | [Read: Police Seek Motive for Canada Killing Spree by Denture Fitter] |
| There have been questions as well about the use of Twitter rather than the emergency alert system by the police to warn people of the killings and to tell them to stay inside. An independent police investigation body is also looking into why officers fired shots into a fire hall being used as an emergency response center. And how did the killer, who did not hold a firearms license, manage to bring in several guns from the United States? | There have been questions as well about the use of Twitter rather than the emergency alert system by the police to warn people of the killings and to tell them to stay inside. An independent police investigation body is also looking into why officers fired shots into a fire hall being used as an emergency response center. And how did the killer, who did not hold a firearms license, manage to bring in several guns from the United States? |
| The answers to those questions will come. For now, Canada mourns. | The answers to those questions will come. For now, Canada mourns. |
| There are suggestions that Prince Edward Island may ease up its coronavirus-related restrictions relatively soon. And this week Saskatchewan rolled out its five stages for reopening the province from its shutdown. | There are suggestions that Prince Edward Island may ease up its coronavirus-related restrictions relatively soon. And this week Saskatchewan rolled out its five stages for reopening the province from its shutdown. |
| But throughout the coronavirus pandemic, health officials and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have emphasized that not all provinces are alike. And there’s been little suggestion that the premiers in large provinces like Ontario or Quebec, where the military is now helping out at long-term care homes, will look to an island with a population of just 157,000 for guidance. | But throughout the coronavirus pandemic, health officials and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have emphasized that not all provinces are alike. And there’s been little suggestion that the premiers in large provinces like Ontario or Quebec, where the military is now helping out at long-term care homes, will look to an island with a population of just 157,000 for guidance. |
| Donald G. McNeil Jr., my colleague with the Science and Health desks who has long reported on plagues and pestilences, was one of the first reporters to forecast the world’s current situation. He’s now written a thorough and sobering analysis of what we can expect to come next. “We face a doleful future,” one leading physician told him. | Donald G. McNeil Jr., my colleague with the Science and Health desks who has long reported on plagues and pestilences, was one of the first reporters to forecast the world’s current situation. He’s now written a thorough and sobering analysis of what we can expect to come next. “We face a doleful future,” one leading physician told him. |
| Despite its headline, many, perhaps most, of the challenges explored in the article apply equally to Canada. Please set aside some time to read it. | Despite its headline, many, perhaps most, of the challenges explored in the article apply equally to Canada. Please set aside some time to read it. |
| Updated June 5, 2020 | |
| The unemployment rate fell to 13.3 percent in May, the Labor Department said on June 5, an unexpected improvement in the nation’s job market as hiring rebounded faster than economists expected. Economists had forecast the unemployment rate to increase to as much as 20 percent, after it hit 14.7 percent in April, which was the highest since the government began keeping official statistics after World War II. But the unemployment rate dipped instead, with employers adding 2.5 million jobs, after more than 20 million jobs were lost in April. | |
| Mass protests against police brutality that have brought thousands of people onto the streets in cities across America are raising the specter of new coronavirus outbreaks, prompting political leaders, physicians and public health experts to warn that the crowds could cause a surge in cases. While many political leaders affirmed the right of protesters to express themselves, they urged the demonstrators to wear face masks and maintain social distancing, both to protect themselves and to prevent further community spread of the virus. Some infectious disease experts were reassured by the fact that the protests were held outdoors, saying the open air settings could mitigate the risk of transmission. | |
| Exercise researchers and physicians have some blunt advice for those of us aiming to return to regular exercise now: Start slowly and then rev up your workouts, also slowly. American adults tended to be about 12 percent less active after the stay-at-home mandates began in March than they were in January. But there are steps you can take to ease your way back into regular exercise safely. First, “start at no more than 50 percent of the exercise you were doing before Covid,” says Dr. Monica Rho, the chief of musculoskeletal medicine at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab in Chicago. Thread in some preparatory squats, too, she advises. “When you haven’t been exercising, you lose muscle mass.” Expect some muscle twinges after these preliminary, post-lockdown sessions, especially a day or two later. But sudden or increasing pain during exercise is a clarion call to stop and return home. | |
| States are reopening bit by bit. This means that more public spaces are available for use and more and more businesses are being allowed to open again. The federal government is largely leaving the decision up to states, and some state leaders are leaving the decision up to local authorities. Even if you aren’t being told to stay at home, it’s still a good idea to limit trips outside and your interaction with other people. | |
| Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks. | |
| Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days. | |
| If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.) | |
| Taking one’s temperature to look for signs of fever is not as easy as it sounds, as “normal” temperature numbers can vary, but generally, keep an eye out for a temperature of 100.5 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. If you don’t have a thermometer (they can be pricey these days), there are other ways to figure out if you have a fever, or are at risk of Covid-19 complications. | |
| The C.D.C. has recommended that all Americans wear cloth masks if they go out in public. This is a shift in federal guidance reflecting new concerns that the coronavirus is being spread by infected people who have no symptoms. Until now, the C.D.C., like the W.H.O., has advised that ordinary people don’t need to wear masks unless they are sick and coughing. Part of the reason was to preserve medical-grade masks for health care workers who desperately need them at a time when they are in continuously short supply. Masks don’t replace hand washing and social distancing. | |
| If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others. | |
| If you’re sick and you think you’ve been exposed to the new coronavirus, the C.D.C. recommends that you call your healthcare provider and explain your symptoms and fears. They will decide if you need to be tested. Keep in mind that there’s a chance — because of a lack of testing kits or because you’re asymptomatic, for instance — you won’t be able to get tested. | |
| [Read: The Coronavirus in America: The Year Ahead] | [Read: The Coronavirus in America: The Year Ahead] |
| Much of the reopening discussion in the United States has centered on figuring out how to get professional sports running again, even if that involves playing in empty stadiums and arenas. | Much of the reopening discussion in the United States has centered on figuring out how to get professional sports running again, even if that involves playing in empty stadiums and arenas. |
| Matthew Futterman, The Times’s deputy sports editor, found that the rush-to-play movement is unlikely to gain much support in Canada. | Matthew Futterman, The Times’s deputy sports editor, found that the rush-to-play movement is unlikely to gain much support in Canada. |
| [Read: Canada Will Have a Big Say on the Return of Major Sports in the U.S.] | [Read: Canada Will Have a Big Say on the Return of Major Sports in the U.S.] |
| And if you haven’t seen it, this week, The Times created a map and information page that’s constantly updated and devoted to Canadian coronavirus data and key information. | And if you haven’t seen it, this week, The Times created a map and information page that’s constantly updated and devoted to Canadian coronavirus data and key information. |
| [View: Canada Coronavirus Map and Case Count] | [View: Canada Coronavirus Map and Case Count] |
| A native of Windsor, Ontario, Ian Austen was educated in Toronto, lives in Ottawa and has reported about Canada for The New York Times for the past 16 years. Follow him on Twitter at @ianrausten. | A native of Windsor, Ontario, Ian Austen was educated in Toronto, lives in Ottawa and has reported about Canada for The New York Times for the past 16 years. Follow him on Twitter at @ianrausten. |
| We’re eager to have your thoughts about this newsletter and events in Canada in general. Please send them to nytcanada@nytimes.com. | We’re eager to have your thoughts about this newsletter and events in Canada in general. Please send them to nytcanada@nytimes.com. |
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