Public health legislation with only 2 people in hospital on Vancouver Island with COVID-19, an etiquette guide for video court, and landlord's liability for oil thrown on a fire
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Vancouver Island, population 870,000, only has 2 people in hospital with COVID-19, as of May 7, and a total of 18 people who have been identified with the virus, who have not recovered, according to the BC Centre for Disease Control.\\xa0
In this context, the Public Health Act and the Emergency Program Act are discussed on the show. Both acts expressly contemplate different orders being made for different areas of the province.
If the number of people with COVID-19 reaches zero on Vancouver Island, consideration would also need to be given as to how such a state of affairs could be maintained. The number of infections in other areas of BC is greater than those on Vancouver Island. \\xa0
Section 15 of the Public Health Act has a general provision that applies at all times: A person must not willingly cause a health hazard, or act in a manner that the person knows, or ought to know, will cause a health hazard.
Also discussed is the BC Provincial Court etiquette guide for people appearing by video link for hearings in court. Tips include not eating or drinking anything but water, not needing to stand up or bow for video appearances, and to dress appropriately. The Provincial Court dress guidelines include not wearing hats, short shorts or muscle shirts and wearing shoes. Essentially, people should dress like they were planning to attend a job interview and not the beach.\\xa0
In other legal news, the Court of Appeal upholds a jury verdict that found the City of Burnaby to be 29% responsible for the burns suffered by a woman when a tenant of the house owned by the city threw a bucket of used motor oil on a fire, causing an explosion. The fire department had previously been called to the house for an out of control fire, with flames 20 feet high, and nothing had been done to remove the unlawfully installed fire pit.
The fire pit was described by the Court of Appeal as a tire rim \\u201caffixed to the ground by gravity\\u201d.
For links to the cases and legislation discussed, and a transcript of the show, follow this link.\\xa0