13 fined for illegal gatherings under Manitoba’s COVID-19 health orders

The Manitoba government says 24 tickets were handed out last week for violations of the province’s COVID-19 public health orders.

The tickets, doled out between June 28 and July 4, include 22 $1,296 tickets to individuals, one $298 fine for not wearing a mask in an indoor public place, and one $5,000 ticket to a business.

Thirteen of the 22 tickets to individuals were connected to gatherings in private homes or outdoors, the government said in a release Tuesday.

The province says 58 warnings were also issued throughout the week.

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Under current health orders gatherings of up to 10 people are allowed on private property and groups of 25 are allowed in public areas. Getting together indoors is still not allowed.

Since enforcement started in April 2020, the province says a total of 5,030 warnings and 2,040 tickets have been issued to individuals and businesses, resulting in nearly $2.8 million in fines.

In May the province announced it would begin issuing double fines for repeat offenders caught breaking COVID-19 public health orders.

An extra $100 default convection penalty is also added to unpaid fines, and the province warns those who don’t respond to tickets will be prohibited from renewing a driver’s license or vehicle registration until the ticket is paid.

Questions about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:

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. In situations where you can’t keep a safe distance from others, public health officials recommend the use of a non-medical face mask or covering to prevent spreading the respiratory droplets that can carry the virus. In some provinces and municipalities across the country, masks or face coverings are now mandatory in indoor public spaces.

For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, visit our coronavirus page.