The mayor of Hamilton, Ont., has compared the novel coronavirus health emergency to living in a science fiction movie.
Fred Eisenberger says three weeks ago, who would have thought that “we’d be sitting in this kind of environment with the streets empty and most businesses closed.”
Eisenberger said the safety measures taken to slow the spread of COVID-19 have made the city seem “like a ghost town” right out of a “script of a sci-fi pandemic movie.”
Unlike in the movies, though, the new reality “has real costs and consequences,” says the mayor.
Eisenberger was reflecting on the fiscal impacts to the municipality of the COVID-19 pandemic, during an appearance on CHML’s Bill Kelly Show on Friday morning.
He confirms there have been “numbers of people” within the city workforce that have been “told to just go home, there isn’t work for you right now,” who will still be paid, he says. ‘We’re going to continue to pay them.”
Eisenberger says the worst thing the city could do is “to start hacking and slashing and cutting people off from an income that they’re going to desperately need and exacerbating this problem.”
From a city budget perspective, the mayor notes that expenses have soared as a result of COVID-19 while revenues have dried up.
He stresses that there’s “no pot of gold lying around here somewhere that will offset all of that.”
In the meantime, Eisenberger tells everyone to continue focusing on the immediate concern, doing their part to stop the spread of the virus.
Questions about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:
Health officials caution against all international travel. Returning travellers are legally obligated to self-isolate for 14 days, beginning March 26, in case they develop symptoms and to prevent spreading the virus to others. Some provinces and territories have also implemented additional recommendations or enforcement measures to ensure those returning to the area self-isolate.
Symptoms can include fever, cough and difficulty breathing — very similar to a cold or flu. Some people can develop a more severe illness. People most at risk of this include older adults and people with severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease. If you develop symptoms, contact public health authorities.
To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent handwashing and coughing into your sleeve. They also recommend minimizing contact with others, staying home as much as possible and maintaining a distance of two metres from other people if you go out.
For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, click here.
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