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Guilbault told the daily briefing in Quebec City populations in those areas are deemed to be more at risk of COVID-19.

She said if people attempting to enter or leave the regions “are not an essential service, if they are not going for health reasons or for humanitarian reasons, they will be sent home.”

Quebec provincial police have also set up checkpoints near the Canada-U.S. border to intercept snowbirds coming back to Quebec to ensure they understand there’s a 14-day quarantine in place.

The province has identified parts of Montreal and the Eastern Townships as being hotspots for spread of the virus, with Montreal declaring a health emergency on Friday afternoon at the behest of provincial health authorities.

Guilbault assured that the situation is under control in the province’s largest city, but said the measure allows to act more quickly to avoid a worst-case scenario.

Montreal’s public health director, Dr. Mylene Drouin, said in a tweet that Montreal’s special measures would be made public on Sunday.

Dr. Horacio Arruda, Quebec’s director of public health, said the 22 people who’ve died came from different areas of the province and were mostly older.

All were over 60 years old, three cases involved people in their 70s, and most were between 80 and 89 years old, he said.

In two cases, the victims were older than 90, and most had other health conditions.

The province reported that 164 people remain hospitalized and 57 are in intensive care.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on March 28, 2020.