Lhe provincial authorities did not begin authorizing stays of seasonal residents outside the island until June 1. Previously, entry to the province was denied to all non-essential travelers.
Since the start of the crisis, the province has documented only 27 cases of COVID-19, all of which have recovered. She has had no deaths, no hospitalizations.
Several out-of-province motorists have complained about vandalism and bullying. Residents have left unpleasant notes on the windshields.
Miriam Leslie is a pastor. She rented a car with Nova Scotia license plates. She discovered an insulting note on her windshield: “beep to the continent! “
The words “of the whole PEI. “Were signed.”
“Having found this grade after visiting a beautiful park was certainly very disappointing,” says Leslie.
She hopes that this will not deter potential visitors from coming to the province. Travel restrictions and self-isolation measures for people from the other Maritime provinces will be lifted effective July 3.
Other similar incidents have been reported on social media in recent weeks. Jordan Bujold, a student at the Atlantic Veterinary School in Charlottetown, posted a photo of her car on Facebook last week showing a large note placed on the bumper that read: “Student of EVA. I have been here since January. Please don’t damage my car again! ”.
In the note accompanying the photo, she added that her car registered in New Brunswick had been vandalized using a key. The same misfortune happened to another woman with whom she had spoken and whose automobile had been registered in Ontario.
People whose vehicles had license plates from outside the province said they were apostrophied in grocery or retail parking lots by residents who questioned where they came from.
These incidents come after weeks of heated debate over the province’s decision to allow seasonal residents to come to their cottages, even those from provinces that still have active cases of coronavirus.
Prime Minister King notes that this xenophobic sentiment is not widespread. It is due, he said, to fear of the unknown caused by the pandemic. He also says he hopes Atlantic tourists will think of Prince Edward Island as a welcoming province.
“My own belief is that many people in our province and beyond have watched these events that could be transported here take place around the world,” he said. For example, if you see what’s going on in Florida, it’s very different from what’s going on here. This largely explains these incidents. ”
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