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WYWS: Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson test positive for COVID-19, gas prices fall again

And despite a 2,500-signature petition, C.D.N.-N.D.G. borough defeated a motion to delay the police's closure of Station 11.

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Good morning and welcome to the Thursday edition of While You Were Sleeping.

Coronavirus news everywhere, from NBA to big screen: While cities and countries grapple with how to identify and treat those afflicted with COVID-19 and how to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus that causes the respiratory disease, the impact is being felt in many sectors, from travel to sports and entertainment. Following the postponement of the Coachella music festival and other concert tour cancellations as well as the World Figure Skating Championships in Montreal, the National Hockey League is still considering what to do after the National Basketball Association suspended its season. But on many front pages and home pages, one couple is getting more attention than most who’ve tested positive for COVID-19: Oscar-winning actor Tom Hanks and his wife, actress Rita Wilson. Hanks revealed on Twitter: “We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches,” the statement reads. “To play things right, as is needed in the world right now, we were tested for the coronavirus, and were found to be positive.”

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Note to readers: We know the speed and volume of coronavirus-related news is overwhelming and a little frightening. To help with that, we will have Montreal Gazette reporter Andy Riga devote his time to synthesizing the most important coronavirus-related news, especially as it relates to life in Montreal and Quebec. You can watch for his live updates at montrealgazette.com starting later this morning. All our coronavirus-related news can always be found at montrealgazette.com/tag/coronavirus.

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Montreal gas prices continue to plummet due to global oil crisis: Four days after world oil prices began to tumble because of a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia, local gas prices continue to hit new lows. According to the gas price monitoring site essencemontreal.com, the average price in Quebec for a litre of regular gas on Thursday morning was $1.04, 7 to 8 cents less than on Monday and about 20 cents less than the previous week. Meanwhile, the gasbuddy.com site reported the average price in Ontario at 95 cents a litre, 90 cents in Alberta and $1.03 in New Brunswick. The collapse in the price of oil came after Saudi Arabia, Russia and other major oil producers failed to agree on how much to cut output to prop up prices.

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Motion to keep police Station 11 in N.D.G. defeated at borough council meeting: A motion to keep Station 11 from moving out of Nôtre-Dame-de-Grâce this fall was defeated on a partisan vote Wednesday at the borough’s council meeting. Mayor Sue Montgomery had presented a 2,500-signature petition to council, demanding a one-year moratorium on the move so police could hold a series of public consultations in Côte-des-Neiges—Notre-Dame-de-Grâce. She attached the petition to the motion, which was supported by Ensemble Montréal Leader Lionel Perez and independent councillor Marvin Rotrand. But since Rotrand couldn’t attend Wednesday’s meeting for family reasons, Projet Montréal’s three councillors voted the moratorium down on party lines. Each of the party’s elected officials defended the Montreal police’s decision to merge Station 11 with Station 9 in neighbouring Côte-St-Luc. “It’s pretty clear that they’re here for Projet Montréal and not the citizens,” Montgomery said. “We have a petition with 2,500 signatures and counting so if the councillors decide to vote against their citizens, I think it’s pretty clear they’re here for their political careers and not for the citizens.” One Projet Montréal councillor says he was ultimately convinced the move would be beneficial for N.D.G. “The change is based on sound policy,” Christian Arseneault said. “We heard the concerns of the community, we shared them and … I have to say that I didn’t go in (to the meeting with police) expecting to change my mind. But they convinced me.”

Sources: Presse Canadienne, Montreal Gazette, Reuters

More news anytime at montrealgazette.com and watch for the new episode of HI/O Show at hockeyinsideout.com, dropping at 11 a.m. today.

Police turn to an elaborate sting operation after the investigation into a woman’s death goes cold. Listen to Episode 3 of She’s Gone.

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