A new shipboard Cdn coronavirus case and pipeline protests; In The News for Feb. 10

In The News is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to kickstart your day. Here is what’s on the radar of our editors for the morning of Feb. 10.

What we are watching in Canada …

Princess Cruises says a Canadian is among an additional 66 confirmed cases of the novel Coronavirus aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship docked in the Japanese port city of Yokohama, just outside Tokyo.

The company says in a release issued early Monday morning that the positive test results were confirmed by the Japanese Ministry of Health and that  it is following the ministry’s “disembarkation protocols to provide medical care for these new cases.”

This latest case raises to eight the number of Canadians aboard the Diamond Princess who have contracted the new virus. The other seven were earlier taken to Japanese hospitals for treatment and monitoring.

Seven cases of the virus have also been diagnosed in Canada.

The federal government said Sunday that it was monitoring the well-being of 285 Canadians quarantined on the Diamond Princess and another cruise ship anchored off Hong Kong.

Meanwhile, Canada’s chief public health officer, Dr. Theresa Tam, said in a statement Sunday that none of the 213 evacuees from Wuhan, China — the epicentre of the outbreak — who are quarantined at Canadian Forces Base Trenton, Ont., have exhibited any symptoms of the virus.

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Also this …

VANCOUVER — The stage is set for a possible confrontation between police and anti-pipeline protesters blocking access to four ports in the Vancouver area.

On Sunday the protesters were served with a court injunction ordering them to stop blocking access to the four ports, but the protesters say they intend to stand their ground.

The protesters are acting in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs, who are trying to halt construction of a massive pipeline project that crosses their traditional territory in northwestern British Columbia.

Their fight has sparked a protest movement that spans from the steps of the B.C. legislature in Victoria to the ports in Vancouver to rail lines in Ontario and Quebec. 

Premier John Horgan has said the pipeline, which is part of the massive $40 billion LNG Canada liquefied natural gas export terminal project, is of vital economic and social importance to the province’s north and already has the approval of 20 elected First Nations councils along the route from Dawson Creek to Kitimat. He noted the courts have decided the pipeline can proceed, and said the rule of law must prevail.

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ICYMI (in case you missed it) …

CALGARY — A Calgary group is hoping to raise enough money to open a homeless shelter in the city that allows residents to bring their pets with them.

Parachutes for Pets has been providing supplies and temporary homes for neglected and abandoned pets for the last year.

Spokeswoman Melissa David says homeless people in Calgary currently have to choose between a warm bed in a shelter or staying outside with their furry friends.

David is using a GoFundMe campaign to try to raise 30-thousand-dollars. She’s hoping to use the money to open a pet-friendly shelter this fall and potentially expand in the future.

John Rook from The Mustard Seed street ministry, which operates a homeless shelter in Calgary, says he’d like to help David.

He says too many people are being turned away from the ministry’s  shelter because pets aren’t allowed.

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What we are watching in the U.S. …

LOS ANGELES — In a milestone win that instantly expanded the Oscars’ horizons, Bong Joon Ho’s masterfully devious class satire “Parasite” became the first non-English language film to win best picture in the 92-year history of the Academy Awards.

“Parasite” took Hollywood’s top prize on Sunday night, along with awards for best director, best international film and best screenplay.

In a year dominated by period epics — “1917,” “Once Upon a Time … In Hollywood,” “The Irishman” — the film academy instead went overseas, to South Korea, to reward a contemporary and unsettling portrait of social inequality in “Parasite.”

The win was a watershed moment for the Academy Awards, which has long been content to relegate international films to their own category.

In the end, “1917” went home with three awards for its technical virtuosity: Roger Deakins’ cinematography, visual effects and sound mixing.

All of the acting winners — Renee Zellweger and Joaquin Phoenix for best actress and actor, and Brad Pitt Laura Dern for best supporting roles — went as expected.

For the 87th time, no women were nominated for best director this year, a subject that was woven into the entire ceremony.

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What we are watching in the rest of the world …

BEIJING — China reported a rise in new coronavirus cases Monday, possibly denting optimism that disease control measures including isolating major cities might be working, while the operator of a cruise ship in Japan reported dozens of new cases.

The mainland death toll rose by 97 to 908 in the 24 hours through midnight Sunday and 3,062 new cases were reported. That was up 15 per cent from Saturday and broke a string of daily declines. A government spokesman had said Sunday those declines showed containment measures were successful.

The fatality toll from the new virus has passed the 774 people believed to have died in the 2002-03 epidemic of severe acute respiratory syndrome, another viral outbreak that originated in China. The total of 40,171 cases on the mainland of the new virus vastly exceeds the 8,098 sickened by SARS.

More than 440 cases have been confirmed outside mainland China, including two deaths in Hong Kong and the Philippines.

China has built two hospitals and sent thousands of extra doctors, nurses and other health care workers to Wuhan, the city of 11 million people in central China that is the epicentre of the outbreak. Most access to Wuhan was suspended Jan. 23. Restrictions have spread to cities with a total of 60 million people.

Businesses are gradually reopening following the Lunar New Year holiday, which was extended to discourage travel in an attempt to contain the virus, but they face heavy losses.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published on Feb. 10, 2020.

The Canadian Press