COVID-19 in Quebec: What you need to know this weekend

• Quebec reported2,146new cases ofCOVID-19 and 21more deathson Sunday.
• Since the start of the pandemic, there have been176,985 confirmedcases and7,736people have died.Here's aguide to the numbers.
• There are 1,010peoplein hospital(an increase offive)including146in intensive care(an increase of four).
• A total of 719doses of a COVID-19 vaccine were administered on Saturday; 4,716 doses have been administered since Dec. 14.
• CBC Montreal is collecting stories from Quebecers who have recovered from COVID-19. If you would like to share your experience, pleaseget in touch.

Quebec registered a record-high2,146 new cases on Sunday, the second day in a row the case count topped the 2,000-mark.

As cases continue to rise across the province, authorities are cracking down on gatherings that flout public health rules.

Police in Quebec City police issued tickets of $1,546 each to three people in the Beauport area early Sunday morning.

The officers were sent to the home after receiving several calls from neighbours about a party. When police arrived, the occupants wouldn't let them in, but the officers obtained a warrant and eventually doled out the fines.

A spokesperson for the Quebec City police service says it added extra patrollers this weekend because so many people are calling to report gatherings.

Earlier this month, Premier Franois Legault warned that police and workplace health and safety inspectors would be cracking down on those who flout the COVID-19 rules.

The situation in the province has gotten progressively worse for the first time since the spring, the province is reporting more than 1,000 coronavirus hospitalizations.

The number has now exceeded that threshold for three consecutive days. Hospitalizations haveincreased by 50 per cent in the past three weeks, according to the government'sINESSSresearch group.

Health Minister Christian Dub said on Friday that 10 of the province's hospitals have reached a "critical stage" and warned the system as a whole will be overwhelmed unless Quebecers follow public health guidelines over the holiday period.

The province is getting ready to accelerateits vaccination campaign, by expanding it to a total of 21sites spread across 15 regions starting next week.

Top COVID-19 stories today

• COVID-19 presents a threat to Quebec's hospitals this winter, here's why.
• Quebec schools, offices, non-essential businesses are closed until Jan. 11.
• Quebec's new lockdownis a harsh reminder that the COVID-19 end game is still several moves away.
• With COVID-19 vaccination underway, Quebec needs a better testing strategy to get virus under control.
• According to Quebec's ombudsman, the province failed to get CHSLDs ready for a pandemic.
• There are new rules to determinewho receiveslife-saving careif health-care system is overwhelmed.
• What we know about Quebec's vaccine plans and what it means for 2021.