Heartbreak on the 49th parallel: Lives interrupted by the Canada-U.S. border closure

Parents who haven’t met their babies. Lonely pregnancies. COVID-19 travel restrictions take a toll

It’s been a dismal few days for Canada-U.S. relations. Specifically, for people in relationships with someone on the other side of the border, dealing with depressing news about their life-altering limbo.

CBC News has spoken with numerous people struggling to deal with restrictions on Canada-U.S. travel intended to slow the spread of COVID-19.

That includes two different mothers whose newborns have never seen their fathers in person; a woman completing her pregnancy alone; two other couples with children; and a couple who had their last date at the border, where it was cut short by border agents.

“Defeated,” is how a new Ontario mother, Megan Scott, described her state of mind this week. 

“It’s heartbreaking,” said Haylie Lynn Gadsby, who has a new baby in Windsor, Ont., while the baby’s belongings are in Michigan — with her fiancé.

“I’m absolutely miserable,” said Lori Bartell, nursing a baby in Prince Edward Island, stranded from her husband in Maine. 

“I am quite mad,” said Steven Husak, who has two children near Detroit and is trying to start a new life with them in Ontario with his fiancée, whom they view as a mother. They were hoping to go camping this summer.

This week’s letdown

Two bits of news this week extended the heartache across the 49th parallel. 

First, as reported by CBC News and other media, government officials expect a ban on non-essential land travel across the border to be renewed beyond June 21.

Another blow came in the fine print of an announcement from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

He announced a relaxation of rules for travelling to Canada — but they only apply to people under specific conditions, which many stranded partners say they cannot meet. 

They require a 15-day minimum stay in Canada, with 14 days in quarantine, and are only for people who meet the legal definition of being immediate family to Canadian citizens.

A new community of people has popped up to share its frustrations in private Facebook chat groups, which count hundreds of members.

They come from different places, and different walks of life, but one thing they tend to have in common is they’re at transitional moments in their lives.

Those with pending immigration applications, for example, have seen them slowed by the pandemic.