The government of British Columbia is putting provincial parks off-limits to visitors from outside the province.
Campsites in B.C. provincial parks will be closed to people from outside the province this summer, as officials continue to adjust the rules to the coronavirus pandemic.
BC Parks said in a statement on Thursday that non-B.C. residents who already have reservations should call before June 15 to cancel and receive a full refund.
Reservations made after next Monday by non-residents will be subject to immediate cancellation without refund.
"The health and safety of our BC Parks staff, park operators and visitors continue to be our top priority. We are all in this together," the agency said in the statement.
The province started reopening some provincial parks ahead of the May long weekend, roughly a month after they were shuttered amid concerns over COVID-19.With the Canada-US border closed to non-essential visitors, the park restrictions will mainly affect the usual traffic from Alberta and other western provinces.
5 comments:
While that looks reasonable in the time of Covid, has it been thought out? RVers from out of BC will simply pull into anywhere there is room and set up camp.
I am an RVer.
Most Provincial campsites provide lots of social distancing in their layout.
The problem is many campers just love the social scene around the campfire.
with that in mind I think it prudent to keep out people from areas less successful in flattening the curve.
FWIW.
When I came to BC in 1974 you could always tell who was an Alberta driver in that he or she would pull over to let you pass.
Times have changed and i doubt that Alberta driver is as conscience of his surroundings as he or she once was?
As for those travellers from the south; they are living in an alternative universe and cannot be trusted.
With a second wave of the virus expected, it's already in China, we have much to be concerned about.
China has used draconian measures to flatten the curve; we have no such tools at our disposal.
instead we mimic the USA's freedoms and liberty BS; forgetting our responsibilities!
TB
Closed to Albertans with the same rate of deaths per capita as BC, and Saskatchewan where the rate is five times less? The difference is infection rates, where Alberta stinks comparatively, especially Calgary. One question is, would Saskatchewaners be brave enough to risk going through Alberta to get to BC?
My brother now happily re-ensconced for three years in NS after over 40 years in BC, used to go on about all the rich Albertans building houses in and around Penticton where he lived, driving up prices. When he left, he blessed the high housing prices and made a pretty good buck. His new house down in the rural area we grew up in cost one-fourth of his takings and the area/zone has a rate of zero Covid-19 deaths per capita, and an infection rate so low you'd weep to be there, all those infected now "recovered". Probably just like Parkland. He can't be bothered to even consider coming up to Halifax for a Costco run, even though 52 of 59 NS deaths have been all in one giant facility for old folks, which another brother's wife's cousin works at. The death rate in those wards is only double the normal. Over ninety year olds commonly die anyway. The difference being this time dying alone with no family nor any visits beforehand. That speeds the end mentally as well, unfortunately, that and the positive diagnosis.
I listened to Dr Henry this morning on CBC, and she's good indeed. Best at expressing herself clearly compared to the other Public Health officials and up-to-date on everything I've read myself and more on the situation worldwide. Couldn't catch her out! She talked about the park ban for Albertans, er, others. Of course, to go wandering off from home on a travel trek is something none of us is supposed to be doing anyway at this time, so I got her point. Wandering extra-provincial cowboys are hard to trace if a problem flares up. Best to confine provincial facilities to their own citizens until this nightmare ends.
BM
Thanks Toby, TB and BM. I'm not sure if closing provincial parks is more than a gestural response although RVs are massively popular on the island in the summer months. My town is a tourist destination and those dollars can be a 'make it or break it' factor for local businesses. Even those of us who find the summer tourism annoying can't ignore what this place might be without that revenue stream.
After reading comments on Covid19 issues in the NP this morning I was amazed just how dispensable, disposable would be a better term, the elderly are to the majority of that papers readers.
TB
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