Quick trip to the U.S. results in quarantine nightmare for northern Ontario couple
A northern Ontario couple who took a three-day trip to the U.S. are now in isolation for two weeks.
Suzanne Beckerton and her partner crossed the border in Sault Ste. Marie on Nov. 4 after uploading all of their documents to the ArriveCan app.
“This can’t be done ahead of time as it can only be done when you are leaving," said Beckerton.
"We scanned our proof of vaccines, we scanned our passports and everything appeared to be uploaded on our apps and everything seemed fine."
The couple was stateside to purchase a snowmobile and when they arrived at the border, they were told to pull to the side and thought nothing of it.
This came after being asked for a QR Code, something they didn’t realize was part of the ArriveCan app and had to be shown in order to cross the border.
“Next thing you know, another officer knocks on my window and says you’re being quarantined for 14 days," said Beckerton. "(He) handed me four COVID tests and said you’re in the system, have a nice day.”
She said they were not prepared for a sudden quarantine.
“I had no way of backing up and there’s no backup plan," Beckerton said.
"What the officer did at the border took him three seconds, to put my life on hold for two weeks. I’ve tried to call all the phone numbers on the app and none of them were successful. I’ve emailed them and they’ve not responded."
She also reached out to her local MP, Carol Hughes, and was told there was nothing they could do.
When contacted by CTV News, Hughes said she has received several calls from constituents about the ArriveCan app, and is encouraging travellers to do their due diligence before leaving.
"There has to be a better avenue for communication," she said. "I think that it's important (for) travellers to make sure that they look at the website -- the government website -- to get all of the details that they need before they travel to try to prevent a lot of this hardship that’s been happening."
Beckerton said the most frustrating part about it all is that she can’t go to work right now.
"I have left my colleagues in a terrible bind and my job is very important and I can’t go to it and I’m perfectly healthy to work," she said.
"I want to work and I’m not allowed to leave the house. It’s completely unfair.”
Meantime, CTV News reached out to the Canada Border Services Agency who issued this statement:
"CBSA is unable to provide comment on specific cases and we cannot speculate on certain outcomes, as each traveller presents themselves to a border services officer under a different set of circumstances, with varying levels of information available,” said Louis-Carl Brissette Lesage, spokesperson for CBSA.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.