A Young Couple Drove 5,000 km Across Canada & Flew To The Arctic Circle To Escape COVID-19

This is one way to make an entrance. Old Crow, Yukon got two unexpected visitors at the end of March who drove 5,000 kilometres across the country and took a flight into the community to escape COVID-19. People there were not pleased with the arrival.

Chief Dana Tizya-Tramm of the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation in Old Crow spoke with the couple from Quebec when they arrived in the community on March 27.

"They dreamt about it, pointed at a map, jumped in their car, and now they're in the Yukon," he told the CBC. "They had no idea where they were going or necessarily what they were doing."

The pair, who are believed to be in their late 20s or early 30s, drove more than 5,000 kilometres from Quebec to Whitehorse before they boarded a plane to Old Crow.

According to The Canadian Press via The National Post, the fly-in only community is about 125 kilometres north of the Arctic Circle and has about 250 residents.

After the Quebecers arrived at the airport trying to escape COVID-19, they were met by a Vuntut Gwitchin official who helped them find a place to stay.

"They were actually quite frightened," the Chief said.

They were put on a flight out of the community to Whitehorse on March 29, according to Vice.

One member of the community shared about the couple's arrival on Twitter and said, "this put our community at incredible risk."

Tizya-Tramm told The Canadian Press that the pair had sold everything they had in Quebec before driving across the country and getting on the first flight they could into Old Crow.

However, it seemed like they were not prepared to actually be in the community.

"He got off the plane in sweat pants, a jacket and a hat," said Tizya-Tramm. "He didn't have even mitts on."

Temperatures are cold there and the average high at the end of March hovers around -11 C while the average low is around -25 C.

"I think we want to take an educational approach first, but if we do have to lay charges, we will. So, at this point in time, I'm pretty sure that the couple is just basically getting a slap on the wrist," Tizya-Tramm told the CBC.

As of April 1, Quebec has almost half of all confirmed COVID-19 cases in Canada and Yukon only has five.

Anyone coming into the territory has to self-isolate for 14 days after their arrival.