China’s Hainan beach resort expands COVID-19 lockdowns

China’s Hainan beach resort expands COVID-19 lockdowns

BEIJING (AP) — The capital of China's Hainan province has locked down its residents for 13 hours on Monday as a COVID-19 outbreak grows on the tropical island during the summer school holidays.

The temporary lockdown of Haikou city from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. follows an ongoing and indefinite lockdown of the beach resort of Sanya since Saturday that is confining vacationers to their hotels for a week. Four other cities and four counties in Hainan also started lockdowns of two days or more on Sunday and Monday.

More than 470 new cases were recorded in the province on Sunday, of which 245 did not show symptoms. Overall, China reported more than 760 new daily cases, the National Health Commission said Monday.

Some 80,000 tourists have reportedly been stranded by the lockdown in Sanya. Those wanting to depart have to test negative five times over seven days.

The election of our discontent: City at a crumbling crossroads, grumbling residents say in poll

There’s an undercurrent of unhappiness running through the Winnipeg electorate as the municipal election day approaches.

One-half of Winnipeggers believe the city is heading in the wrong direction, according to a new Abacus Data poll, with nearly one-third unsure if Winnipeg is regressing or progressing.

Only 21 per cent of residents believe the city is on the right track, the Free Press-commissioned poll found.

That discontentment extends to how the city spends its tax dollars, with four in 10 Winnipeggers believing they receive poor value for what they pay in property taxes.

RCMP charge 11 people with weapons offences after investigation into northern First Nation violence

RCMP investigators have laid nearly two dozen weapons charges against 11 people in a lengthy probe into a drug and gun trafficking organization tied to repeated acts of violence and arson meant to stoke fear in Bunibonibee Cree Nation.

The new arrests and charges come 10 months after the initial takedown of Project Derry, in which 27 suspects were arrested on drug charges and $1.2 million in illicit substances were seized.

The project dismantled a trafficking network that funnelled drugs, including cocaine, oxycodone, fentanyl and carfentanil, into the remote northern First Nation via Winnipeg and Thompson.

Police say the crime group was behind an escalation in violence, arson and intimidation of community members and band leaders in Bunibonibee (Oxford House), approximately 950 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg.

MPI lowers speed limit on tech upgrade with ‘IT roadmap’ following Project Nova debacle

Manitoba Public Insurance is now using an “IT road map” and phasing in new technology and systems after pulling the plug last year on its failed $164-million overhaul known as Project Nova, its annual report says.

Whistleblower pharmacist fined for misconduct after complaint

A Manitoba pharmacist who made complaints against a colleague that led to sanctions against him has now also been fined due to her own conduct.