While Quebec may be the province hardest hit by COVID-19, that's not stopping the provincial government from now allowing indoor and outdoor gatherings of 250 people. So for better or worse, this means music festivals are no longer banned in the province.
The Quebec Tourism Ministry officially announced the move on Wednesday (August 5), allowing event organizers to now host both indoor and outdoor festivals and concerts across the province. However, they must follow public health guidelines.
"Festivals and event organizers are professional managers of gatherings and I'm confident that the resumption of activities will be done in a responsible fashion," Tourism Minister Caroline Proulx said in a statement.
The public health guidelines include rules that organizers must ensure they control entry and exit points, as well as strictly respect the 250-people limit. The press release adds, "They must also put in place measures to promote the maintenance of a distance of 2 meters between participants who do not reside at the same address. If the same festival offers more than one outdoor site, they must be distinct and not contiguous, with different access and waiting areas."
So far, no major Quebec festivals have announced that they will be returning under the new guidelines.
During the pandemic, Quebec has so far seen 60,133 reported cases of COVID-19, with 5,687 deaths contributed to the virus.
The Quebec Tourism Ministry officially announced the move on Wednesday (August 5), allowing event organizers to now host both indoor and outdoor festivals and concerts across the province. However, they must follow public health guidelines.
"Festivals and event organizers are professional managers of gatherings and I'm confident that the resumption of activities will be done in a responsible fashion," Tourism Minister Caroline Proulx said in a statement.
The public health guidelines include rules that organizers must ensure they control entry and exit points, as well as strictly respect the 250-people limit. The press release adds, "They must also put in place measures to promote the maintenance of a distance of 2 meters between participants who do not reside at the same address. If the same festival offers more than one outdoor site, they must be distinct and not contiguous, with different access and waiting areas."
So far, no major Quebec festivals have announced that they will be returning under the new guidelines.
During the pandemic, Quebec has so far seen 60,133 reported cases of COVID-19, with 5,687 deaths contributed to the virus.