1) A group of physicians is concerned about Quebec's plan authorizing gatherings of up to 250 people next Monday despite a #COVID19 resurgence, warning this will cause more outbreaks just before schools reopen in September. Please click on my column below. https://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/analysis-montreal-doctors-sound-alarm-about-large-public-gatherings/wcm/7ef685e4-c117-4282-96e7-ea6dc24be302/

2) The physicians, who are also against the June 25 reopening of bars, have not yet decided to go public with their objections, in part, for fear of professional reprisals. But I was allowed to view a chain of emails in which they expressed their deep reservations.

3) The physicians cited the recent outbreaks in bars and other venues as warning signs, arguing that large gatherings will only fuel the resurgence. And tonight, Le Devoir reported that at least three lifeguards in the Lachine borough have tested positive for the #coronavirus.

4) On Monday, a summer hockey camp in N.D.G. confirmed a #COVID outbreak. And on Tuesday, the Pharmaprix chain revealed two employees tested positive at two different Verdun pharmacies. Such cases have been fairly common in Montreal pharmacies and supermarkets of late.

5) If outbreaks are occurring now with the 50-person restriction on gatherings, what can Montreal expect when that limit is increased by five times this Monday? Premier @francoislegault should heed the physicians’ warning and rescind the larger gatherings. That would be prudent.

6) Meanwhile, the metropolis posted 88 new cases on Tuesday, up from 45 the day before, as the rebounding orange line in the chart below shows. Three weeks ago, the city was observing two dozen cases a day. Obviously, Montreal is in the throes of a #COVID resurgence.

7) This trend is all the more troubling because the city’s emergency rooms are once again overflowing with patients. The chart below shows the extent of the ER overcrowding. Under such circumstances, it becomes impossible to separate non-COVID patients from infected ones.

8) For 10 days, Montreal has not declared a #COVID fatality, although Quebec's death toll crept up by two to 5,670. Perhaps the government is not acting more cautiously because hospitalizations and deaths are down. If that’s the reason, it would be a foolish one. End of thread.