The officers at the border charged British Columbia woman, who told them that the COVID-19 policy had changed, suffered a horrific experience.
- Canada had exempted a Covid-19 test, quarantine, for residents of the flood-affected B.C residents.
- Marlane Jones who traveled to the US for purchasing gas, got fined $5700 for breaching COVID protocols.
- The Public Health Agency of Canada will review the situation to refund residents affected by the ignorance of border agents.
Marlane Jones thought she changed into doing the proper thing with the aid of using heading throughout the border to shop for gas withinside the U.S.
Instead, Canadian agents on the Pacific Highway border crossing in Surrey, B.C. scolded her for breaching COVID protocols and fined her $5,seven-hundred.
Jones stated she determined to gas up in Blaine, Wash., after seeing the information about Ottawa approving an exemption permitting British Columbians from flood-affected regions to make brief journeys into the U.S. for gas or necessities while not having to offer a negative PCR test for COVID-19.
The exemption changed into added to assist ease delivery shortages on account of current severe rain that washed out highways and rail traces in southwest B.C., and changed into introduced on Sunday with the aid of using Minister of Emergency Preparedness Bill Blair.
But the border agents Jones handled on Monday had no information of it.
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The agents had been pretty stern and stated that Jones changed into violating the Quarantine Act because she did not have the PCR check. Jones informed them that the policies had changed, however they failed to buy it.
Jones stated, after being despatched by the border enforcement officers, agents there gave her 2 options: take delivery of the hefty quality or flip around and move back to Washington state for a PCR test and viable 72-hour watch for results.
On Tuesday, Blair admitted there has been a little confusion across the exemption.
He stated instances of folks who had been likely fined in blunders had been being reviewed with the aid of using the Public Health Agency of Canada, which oversees quarantine violations.
Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) stated there may be a transition length that “can also additionally result in a few inconsistencies” whilst operational recommendations are changed.
