Afternoon Update for April 8, 2020

Premier John Horgan. 📷: Province of British Columbia (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

NANAIMO —Travellers returning to British Columbia will face more intensive screening. The Premier says people arriving at airports and border crossings will have to show they have a plan to self-isolate, instead of just promising to do so. John Horgan says translators will be stationed at airports to ensure travellers understand that self-isolation means returning directly home, with no stops at grocery stores, picking up pets or visits with friends or family. Horgan says people will be taken into quarantine if they are showing symptoms of COVID-19 or if they do not have a place to self-isolate. The Premier concedes enforcement measures are still being sorted out. He says police have the power to levy fines or charges under the federal Quarantine Act, and the province is examining whether local bylaw officers should be given the same power.

In more travel news, BC Ferries has changed its schedules on routes that serve the Southern Gulf Islands. Starting this Friday, service to Long Harbour on Saltspring Island will be temporarily suspended. Saltspring will continue to be served by two other routes: Swartz Bay to Fulford Harbour and Crofton to Vesuvius. The Tsawassen to Southern Gulf Island routes will be merged into one. As of Friday, the "Salish Raven" will travel between Swartz Bay and Tsawassen with stops at Pender, Mayne and Galiano Islands. Service between Swartz Bay and Saturna, Mayne, Galiano and Pender Islands will be delivered by the Queen of Cumberland. Customers with reservations on the old routes will be automatically refunded. To see the new schedules, go to the BC Ferries website, under SGI Temporary Schedule. These changes will remain in effect until June the 2nd.

Provincial parks in BC are closed until further notice. The decision is an attempt to ensure people stay at home this holiday weekend. The province says it was prompted by concerns raised by the RCMP, first nations, local governments and search and rescue groups about the ability to enforce physical distancing orders in wilderness settings. BC Parks has also extended its ban on camping until the end of May. Refunds for bookings will be sent automatically. Canada's national parks were closed to traffic two weeks ago because of a big spike in use.

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Lisa Cordasco

Senior Reporter and News Director — Lisa is responsible for creating the station's first morning news current affairs show on CHLY. She is also deeply involved in training and mentoring student and citizen journalists who volunteer their time at the station. Before joining CHLY, Lisa spent 35 years in various roles at CBC Radio, from host to reporter. Her passion for journalism and radio has led her to Nanaimo, where she intends to provide CHLY listeners with news they can use, in an alternative radio environment. Her other not-so-secret passion is costuming for any occasion.

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