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Montrealers are allowed to be outside until 9:30 starting today.
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Half-hour police chase on Highway 40
The Sûreté du Québec said it was informed around 7:30 p.m. that a driver was driving “erratically” on Highway 40 eastbound. The vehicle was quickly located, but the driver, a man in his 40s, refused to stop, said Sgt. Louis-Philippe Bibeau. A chase ensued during which police deployed two spike strips to attempt to blow out the vehicle’s tires and force it to stop, and closed highway off-ramps to keep the vehicle on the highway. Half an hour later, near the interchange with Highway 55 just before Trois-Rivières, the driver voluntarily stopped the vehicle before it hit the second strip. He was arrested for dangerous driving and fleeing the scene. Police believe he was involved in another collision, a hit-and-run, earlier in the evening in Montreal, Bibeau said.
Drinking a factor in fewer fatal road crashes in Quebec, report says
From 2008 to 2018, the proportion of deaths caused by drunk driving went from 19.6 to 9.9 per cent, according to a document prepared for the French insurance comparison site hellosafe.ca. In 2008, there were 109 deaths where alcohol was involved, compared to 35 a decade later. The report notes that there has been an overall decline in the number of fatal road accidents. From 1973 to 2019, mortality on the road dropped almost 85 per cent, even with three times as many vehicles. It attributed the decrease to government awareness campaigns, mandatory seat belts and improvements in safety in both vehicles and highway infrastructure. Antoine Fruchard, head of Hellosafe.ca, said the data show the “immense progress accomplished in road safety, even if each person who dies on the road is always one too many.”
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Legault “optimistic” about agreement with public-sector unions
Premier François Legault and Treasury Board president Sonia LeBel met with leaders of five powerful unions representing the workers employed in the health and education sectors; their contract expired in March 2020. Legault said he felt “a positive tone” in the meeting with the union leaders and that he is asking the unions “to intensify negotiations” so an agreement can be reached. But the government salary offer has not changed. Unions “want more money. We don’t have more money,” Legault said. “We are at the limit of what we can afford to pay.”
Driver critically injured after collision with ambulance
A 21-year-old man is fighting for his life after the vehicle he was driving collided head-on with an ambulance. Montreal police said the collision took place about 5:10 p.m. on the Angrignon Blvd. overpass near St-Patrick St. in the LaSalle borough. Witnesses said the vehicle was headed north on Angrignon when, “for a reason unknown for the moment, the vehicle deviated to hit the ambulance, which was heading south,” said Montreal police spokesperson Jean-Pierre Brabant. The ambulance driver was transported to a hospital in critical condition. The two paramedics in the ambulance were also brought to a hospital, with minor injuries.
Vaccinations now open to people 45+
People with high-risk health conditions, who have disabilities or work in some essential services are also eligible regardless of age. Appointments can be booked through clicsante.ca or by calling 1-877-644-4545.
With files from Presse Canadienne.
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