When 40 Canadian Rangers swung into action in northern Quebec this week to set up heated tents for COVID screening and conduct other tasks in their local communities due to the pandemic, they formed the most visible military response to the crisis to date. OTTAWA — When 40 Canadian Rangers swung into action in northern Quebec this week to set up heated tents for COVID screening and conduct other tasks in their local communities due to the pandemic, they formed the most visible military response to the crisis to date. The Rangers were mobilized in response to a request for assistance from provincial authorities, the first to the federal government because of COVID Thousands more troops are standing by in case it isn’t the last. But what exactly can the Canadian Armed Forces bring to bear in a fight with a pandemic? And how will commanders decide how to use troops who, once committed, could find themselves infected, or quarantined, and taken out of the fight? Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan announced last month that the military was mobilizing up to 24, troops so it would be able to respond to COVID as well as floods and forest fires that have become commonplace in the spring in recent years. Equipment is being gathered at key military bases such CFB Borden in Ontario, but the majority of troops have been ordered to self-isolate to ensure they are clean of COVID — to preserve their own health and so they don’t infect those they are tasked with helping. Warships have also been ordered to wait off each coast until called into action for the same reason: to ensure their crews remain clean of COVID And while aircrew continue to transport equipment and supplies here and to missions overseas, only essential staff are working.
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