The Vancouver park board has decided to join the thousands of local residents who are raising a ruckus every evening at 7 p.m.

At this time, people come out on their balconies and porches to bang pots and applaud the health-care workers who are putting themselves in harm's way to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

Starting on Monday (March 30), the park board will fire the famous Nine O'clock Gun at Brockton Point in Stanley Park at 7 p.m.

That will continue until the end of April to salute the doctors, nurses, cleaners, lab technicians, respiratory therapists, long-term care attendants, paramedics, and others who keep showing up to work every day to help people infected with the novel coronavirus.

"I’ve been contacted by several members of the community over the past few days who are asking what more we can do to demonstrate our appreciation and gratitude for health care workers in our city,” park board chair Camil Dumont said in a news release.

Because the 12-pound, muzzle-loaded cannon is being set off at 7 p.m., it won't fire again at 9 p.m. from Monday until April 30.

The Nine O'clock Gun was installed in Stanley Park in 1894 and was first used to warn about the close of fishing on Sundays at 6 p.m.