Sussexes flee Canada for LA where coronavirus cases are 'surging'

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have reportedly fled their Canada home for Los Angeles, California, amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

The couple and their 10-month-old son Archie are believed to have made the move southward before the US temporarily closed its border with Canada on March 21, according to People magazine.

While the former royals’ reps have ‘no comment’ on the reason the young family relocated from their sleepy, secluded Vancouver Island base for the bright lights of Hollywood, if they were keen to escape COVID-19 they may have chosen the wrong city.

LA’s coronavirus ‘surge’

On Friday, LA County officials declared a ‘surge’ in virus cases and deaths, with 257 more people infected and five more fatalities, reports the Los Angeles Times.

That brings LA’s total cases to just under 1,500 and 26 deaths so far.

In contrast, coronavirus has been spreading at half the rate in Harry, 35, and Meghan’s former home state of British Columbia, which has recorded 725 cases and 14 deaths as of last Thursday, according to CTV Vancouver Island.

The new parents are, however, not taking any chances and apparently have not set foot outside their secluded compound in an undisclosed location in ex-Suits star Meghan’s hometown.

Their move to LA brings them closer to the 38-year-old Duchess’ mother, Doria Ragland, who lives in the city, as well as a number of friends.

“Harry is looking straight ahead at his future with his family. They will be spending time in California...He's not looking back,” a source previously told People.

Meghan’s big new role

On Friday, it was revealed that Meghan would be making a segue back into her former career via her first job after quitting life as a senior royal.

Disney+ confirmed the Duchess of Sussex has narrated an original movie Elephant which will stream on the new service from April 3.

Harry, meanwhile, was forced to cancel this year’s Invictus Games due to the outbreak of coronavirus. The 2020 games, in which wounded, injured or sick armed services personnel compete in nine sports, were due to be held in May in The Hague, Netherlands.

A $6m British ‘bolthole’

It appears that at least a part of Harry’s heart still remains in his birth country of Britain — where his father Prince Charles is currently in self-isolation after testing positive to COVID-19 — if rumours are to be believed.

Earlier this week, it was claimed the couple have also been making plans to build a £3 million (about AUD$605 million) house in Oxfordshire, South East England.

“This house will be their bolthole when they are in the UK,” a source said.

The area is a favourite with the pair, featuring their go-to members-only retreat, Soho Farmhouse, and the Cotswolds estate where the Duchess held her three-day hen party in 2018.

The proposed three-bedroom property would also be close to a country home being built for Harry and Meghan’s friends David and Victoria Beckham.

Additional reporting by BANG Showbiz.

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