The COVID-19 pandemic in Montreal was part of the global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a novel infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Until April 2021, Montreal was the worst affected health region in Canada. Despite being surpassed by Toronto in total number of cases, Montreal still has the highest total death count and the highest death rate in Canada, with the death rate from COVID-19 being two times higher on the island of Montreal than in the city of Toronto due in large part to substantial outbreaks in long-term care homes. Montreal is Canada's second most populous city, the largest city in Quebec, and the eighth most populous city in North America.
Montreal confirmed its first case of COVID-19 on February 27, 2020. The patient was a 41-year-old woman who had returned from Iran three days earlier on a flight from Doha, Qatar.
In early March 2020, the closure of public spaces, including stores, gyms, shopping malls, and schools, began. On March 27, with nearly 1,000 confirmed cases, Montreal declared a state of emergency. The first wave of COVID-19 lasted until early summer, at which point the economy started to gradually reopen, with daily case counts dropping into the double digits. In September 2020, facing the possibility of a second wave, the Quebec government announced a colour-coded alert level system made up of four zones (green, yellow, orange, and red), with restrictions being least severe in green zones and most severe in red zones. On September 30, Montreal was placed in the red zone.
Over the next few months, the second wave continued to worsen, prompting renewed closures and eventually, a province-wide lockdown, which came into effect on December 25 (Christmas Day). On January 9, a curfew came into effect. The lockdown ended a month later, allowing for non-essential businesses to reopen.
In December 2020, the vaccination campaign began, starting with residents of long-term care homes and healthcare workers. On March 1, 2021, only a year after the arrival of the pandemic, mass vaccination of the general population began.
At the end of March 2021, as the second wave was dying down, some restrictions were lifted, including the closure of gyms, theatres, and show venues. Not even two weeks later, the reopening was reversed due to a third wave driven by the Alpha variant. However, unlike the first and second waves, Montreal and its surrounding areas were not the hotspot of the province during the third wave, managing to endure it with only a minimal to non-existent rise in cases, hospitalizations, and deaths. Towards the end of May, with over 50% of the island's population vaccinated with at least one dose, restrictions started to gradually lift, with the curfew ending on May 28 in all regions of Quebec. On June 7, after about eight months in the red zone, Montreal moved into the orange zone, allowing gyms and dine-in restaurants to open, and on June 14, they moved into the yellow zone, allowing bars to reopen. Finally, on June 28, Montreal moved into the zone with the fewest restrictions, the green zone. Two months later, Montreal ended its state of emergency.
With the rise of the Omicron variant, the Quebec government reintroduced province-wide restrictions in December 2021, forcing gyms, restaurants, and other establishments to close, despite the vaccine passport requirement in these settings and a high vaccination rate in Montreal. During the first two weeks of 2022, Montreal was subject to a contentious curfew from 10:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m.
Restrictions began to loosen in February 2022, and by mid-March, almost all COVID-19 measures in Montreal had been lifted, with the notable exception of the mask mandate. Finally, on May 14, 2022, the mask mandate for most indoor spaces was lifted.
Timeline
Montreal region, new cases per day
Boroughs
Impact
The COVID-19 pandemic had significant social, economic, and healthcare impacts in Montreal. During the early stages of the pandemic, Montreal became one of the hardest-hit regions in Canada, with high infection and mortality rates, particularly in long-term care facilities and densely populated neighborhoods. Healthcare systems experienced increased pressure due to hospitalizations and staff shortages during multiple waves of infections.
Public health measures introduced by the Quebec government, including lockdowns, business closures, gathering limits, and curfews, affected daily life and economic activity in Montreal. In January 2021, Quebec implemented a province-wide nighttime curfew, one of the strictest measures in Canada, restricting movement between evening and early morning hours. Schools, gyms, restaurants, and entertainment venues were periodically closed or operated under capacity limits during subsequent waves
The pandemic also had economic consequences, particularly in downtown Montreal, where reduced tourism, remote work, and public health restrictions led to decreased business activity and increased commercial vacancy rates. Some sectors, including retail, hospitality, and tourism, experienced prolonged recovery periods following lockdowns and restrictions.
Vaccination campaigns began in late 2020 and expanded throughout 2021, contributing to a gradual easing of restrictions. However, subsequent waves, including those driven by variants such as Omicron, continued to place pressure on healthcare systems and led to renewed public health measures in late 2021 and early 2022.
By 2022, most restrictions in Montreal were gradually lifted as vaccination rates increased and case numbers stabilized. Despite reopening, public health officials reported that the pandemic had lasting social and economic impacts, particularly among vulnerable populations and communities disproportionately affected by COVID-19.
Criminality During the period between the start of the health emergency in Quebec, on March 13, 2020, and May 15, 2020, crimes in Montreal fell by 30% compared to the same period in 2019. In April, a drastic drop of more than two-thirds of reports to the DPJ was observed by the interveners compared to the previous year.
With the suspension of most professional sports leagues, the illegal sports betting network of the Montreal mafia was also undermined. The price of a kilogram of cocaine in Montreal was around $65,000 per kilogram, compared to $43,000 before the pandemic.
On July 18, the date on which wearing a mask in indoor public places became compulsory in Quebec, a man was arrested in a Tim Hortons in Montreal as a result of his refusal to wear a mask. The event was filmed and went viral.
In Old Montreal, residents reported an increase in crime in the absence of tourists. In response, the Old Port of Montreal set a midnight curfew in the area on June 2, 2021.
Cultural On March 12, Montreal cancelled the St. Patrick's Day parades for the first time in its 196-year history. The Montreal Symphony Orchestra cancelled concerts scheduled through May 24, including a planned performance at New York City's Carnegie Hall. Various festivals were cancelled, including Les Francos, Montréal Complètement Cirque, and the Montreal International Jazz Festival. Montreal's Just for Laughs comedy festival was postponed to late September and early October. The Montreal Fireworks Festival was also cancelled.
On March 13, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA), the Montreal Museum of Contemporary Art (MAC), and the OPTICA contemporary art centre in Montreal were closed indefinitely, in addition to all national museums in Canada. The next day, the McCord Museum did the same. On April 17, the McCord Museum launched a collaborative photographic project that would use photos to document this period of confinement. On May 5, Montreal museums raised the possibility of reopening by early summer.
On March 14, the Beaubien cinema, the Parc cinema, the Musée cinema, and the Quebec Cinematics, as well as all the museums and all the libraries in the Bibliothèque et Archives Nationales du Québec network closed their doors for 30 days following the request of the Minister of Culture and Communications, Mrs. Nathalie Roy. In addition to these cinemas, the performance halls of the Théâtre de Quat'Sous and the Théâte PAP, the Agora de la danse and the Prospero theater.
As of April 9, several events and shows were cancelled due to COVID-19, including: +Cancelled events, shows and festivals in MontrealEventsWhenWhereFRANCOUVERTES 2020February 17 – May 4Lion d'or and Club SodaCabane Panache et Bois Rond 2020March 19 – March 22Wellington PromenadeDr. Mobilo Aquafest 2020May 1 – May 16Fairmount TheaterDistorsion Psych fest 2020May 6 – May 9St-Infant Jesus ChurchFestival METRO METRO 2020May 15 – May 17Esplanade du Stade OlympiquePouzza fest 2020May 15 – May 17Quartier des spectaclesFestival transamériques FTA 2020May 20 – June 3Downtown Montreal
On April 10, following the government's request to suspend events across Quebec until August 31, evenko confirmed that its festivals, notably OSHEAGA, ILESONIQ, and LASSO Montreal would not take place on the scheduled dates, without however officially cancelling said festivals. The Montreal Pride Festival, scheduled from August 6 to 16, was also cancelled.
On May 19, the Montreal Pride announced that a virtual parade would take place from August 10 to 16, 2020. The next day, the Backstreet Boys officially postponed their DNA tour, which was scheduled to stop at the Bell Centre in Montreal on September 16.
On May 22, Minister of Culture Nathalie Roy announced the reopening of museum institutions, cultural product loan counters, and drive-ins on Friday, May 29 throughout Quebec.
On May 29, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts announced the resumption of its activities as of June 6, 2020.
On June 4, the OSM played for the first time in two months at the Maison Symphonique de Montréal.
On June 9, the Osheaga and ILE SONIQ music festivals, which took place every summer in Montreal, were postponed to 2021.
On June 17, the organizers of the Montreal International Jazz Festival announced that a virtual festival would take place from June 27 to 30.
On June 22, the Opéra de Montréal postponed its Jenufa and La Traviata productions, scheduled for fall 2020, due to COVID-19.
On June 23, the McCord Museum reopened. The next day the MAC reopened, and the Stewart Museum followed suit.
Because of the pandemic, Quebec's national holiday, Saint-Jean-Baptiste, which normally takes place on June 23 in Quebec City and June 24 in Montreal, took place on June 23 in Trois-Rivières.
Starting on July 6, the active and safe routes put in place throughout the city to respond to physical distancing measures were animated through digital works. The city of Montreal provided a budget of $800,000 for this purpose.
Economy While the national unemployment rate in April 2020 was 13%, it was estimated to be at 18.2% in the Montreal metropolitan region, up 13.4 percentage points since February. Towards the end of April, Montreal announced a plan to cut its expenditures to fill the deficit of $500 million. The Conference Board suggested that economic activity in the Montreal region would decline by 3.6% in 2020, the result of a fall of 6.6% expected in the second quarter. It was estimated that the Montreal market should lose almost 55,000 jobs in 2020, with an unemployment rate of up to 8.9% (compared to 5.7% last year).
On May 7, Montreal deployed the Fonds de développement de l'économie sociale (FDES) program, which offers grants of up to $50,000 for "startup, growth or consolidation projects."
On May 19, for the first time in almost two and a half months, Montreal gas stations sold a liter of regular fuel at a price greater than $1 per liter.