The Town of Happy Valley-Goose Bay says it was forced by the Newfoundland and Labrador government to cancel a motorcade demonstration planned for Wednesday evening against outside workers who might be spreading COVID-19 in the Big Land.

The issue that parked the motorcade turned out to COVID-19, too, although this time it was the government's worry that participants might spread it.

The planned "Stop The Spread" motorcade originally scheduled for 5 p.m. AT was called off Wednesday, just a few hours before it was set to get underway.

"The mayor and council remain resolute and steadfast in their message to the premier. Stop The Spread – Close Labrador Down," reads a town news release issued Wednesday evening.

The protest was organized to draw attention to what residents and municipal leaders say is swirling anxiety related to non-essential travel to and from Labrador. The town asked residents to form a convoy to send a message to the premier to close Labrador's points of entry to everyone except essential workers and those requiring medical travel.

On Tuesday, the provincial government clamped down on public parades, of any kind, to ensure people were staying home and only going out for essentials. Health Minister John Haggie said people were congregating before and after parades, putting themselves at risk of spreading the highly infectious coronavirus.

Despite the new rules, Happy Valley-Goose Bay Mayor Wally Andersen was defiant Wednesday morning, saying the protest was necessary.

"There are people coming in from out of town, from everywhere," Andersen said earlier Wednesday, pointing out a number of construction projects are ongoing despite public health emergency orders.

"Construction is not an essential service in this crisis."

Andersen had said every mayor and band council in Labrador supports the prospect of closing borders, adding that all agree continuing work at the Muskrat Falls hydroelectric project site puts residents at risk of contagion.

"Mr. [Dwight] Ball, mandate. Mandate what we're asking for, and then we can start to control, and do our part to prevent, the spread of this virus," he said.

"We're not talking about paving the Trans-Labrador highway, we're not asking for a new hospital. We're asking here for safety of the lives of the people."

'Confusion and fear'

Andersen said fears reached a boiling point earlier this week when Nalcor workers landed in Happy Valley-Goose Bay.

Despite safety protocols instructing them to move directly from the plane to buses, which would take workers to the site, many went through the airport and into town to collect belongings, Andersen said.

"When the flight came in a couple days ago, every protocol that they had put out was broken," Andersen said. "The confusion and the fear that that created … the trust is broken. Who knows? If they do it once, will they do it again?"

Andersen said Nalcor CEO Stan Marshall apologized and said the incident would not be repeated, but the mayor said that wasn't sufficient.

"We made it very clear that an apology just don't cut it."

Lake Melville MHA Perry Trimper called Nalcor's breach of protocol "frustrating" and said he supported his constituents' motorcade plans in protest of non-essential travel — but had a different idea for the demonstration.

"Instead of getting in a convoy and heading to Muskrat Falls, let's turn it around. Drive down by the hospital and let those front-line health-care workers know we care about them," he said.

MHA Perry Trimper supports residents' pleas to restrict entry to Labrador. File photo. (Katie Breen/CBC)

That's where we can put our energy, that's where we can put our noise and show our appreciation for what is a very tough job right now."

Trimper agreed the move would reinforce residents' message to the premier, whom Andersen asked for quick action.

"We have a responsibility here to our communities. We need to make sure that things are done in a proper fashion. We need the premier to come out and make firm and mandate essential services only," Andersen said.

"Until we get that in place it's going to be impossible for us to monitor the situation."

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