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Despite Talks Of Reopening, B.C. Extends State Of Emergency

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Photo: Andriy Baranskyy / Flickr

Despite talks of reopening the economy next month, B.C.’s premier has extended the State of Emergency for the third time.

Premier John Horgan announced, Wednesday, the provincial State of Emergency will stay in place until May 12th, when they will reassess.

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“It’s going to take resolute action from all of us to make progress and not give up progress,” he said during the press conference, Wednesday.

The province originally declared the State of Emergency, March 18th, and has been extended every two weeks, since.

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However, Horgan also said by next week he would outline plans to reopen the province. The new measures will mean slowly lifting restrictions, while keeping physical distancing rules in place.

Some companies have announced reopening as early as this week. VanDusen Botanical Garden is set to open Friday, but will only allow 30 people in at a time.

Starbucks is also planning to reopen locations, but seating will remain unavailable.

“It’s not just going to be the flick of a switch,” said Horgan. “The only way we build that confidence is to have a set of common protocols, common guidelines, in place to protect workers, in place to protect consumers.”

There are currently 2,087 cases of COVID-19 within B.C.

For more B.C. stories, head to our News section.

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