Canada added 2,681 new novel coronavirus infections on Monday, bringing the country’s total case count to 240,010.
Provincial health authorities also said another 29 people had died after contracting the virus.
Since the pandemic began, a total of 10,208 people have died in Canada after testing positive for COVID-19.
In a video posted to Twitter, WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus pointed to the increase in cases in some places in Europe and North America, saying it is a “critical moment for action.”
“Another critical moment for leaders to step up, and another critical moment for people to come together for a common purpose,” he said.
“Seize the opportunity, it’s not too late.”
He said ensuring that quality testing, contact tracing and treatment measures are implemented is “key.”
“We all have a role to play in suppressing transmission,” he said.
Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam said the case count in the country remains above the peak levels seen during the first wave of the pandemic.
1/3 #COVID19 key concerns in ????????: Case counts remain above peak levels seen during the 1st wave. The number of people experiencing severe illness continues to↑. Strengthened response is needed now to stop this accelerated growth. https://t.co/aEAaMWcleH
“The number of people experiencing severe illness continues to (increase),” she wrote on Twitter. “Strengthened response is needed now to stop this accelerate growth.”
In a subsequent tweet, Tam urged Canadians to keep their number of in-person close contacts “as low as possible.”
In Ontario, 948 new cases were reported on Monday, and health officials said seven more people had died.
The new infections bring the province’s total case load and death toll to 77,655 and 3,152 respectively.
However, a total of 66,407 have recovered after contracting the virus, while 5,174,968 tests have been administered.
In Quebec — the province hardest hit by the pandemic — 1,037 new cases were detected on Monday, and officials said 11 more deaths had been reported.
The province has now seen 108,018 cases of COVID-19 and 6,283 deaths associated with the virus.
Meanwhile, 92,396 people have recovered after falling ill, and 3,153,926 have been tested.
Seventy-four new cases were detected in Saskatchewan, bringing the province’s total case count to 3,292.
But health officials said the death toll remained at 25.
So far, 2,409 people in Saskatchewan have recovered from COVID-19 infections, while 268,166 people have been tested.
In Manitoba, 241 new cases were detected, and health officials said five more people had died, bringing the case count and death toll in the province to 6,275 and 80, respectively.
To date, health authorities in Manitoba have conducted 262,571 tests for the respiratory illness, and 2,740 people have recovered after falling ill.
British Columbia reported 372 new cases and six new deaths on Monday.
Health officials said the new deaths had occurred since Friday.
The province has now seen 15,248 confirmed infections, and 269 fatalities related to COVID-19.
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Thus far, 12,207 people in B.C. have recovered from the virus, while 827,496 have been tested.
Alberta did not report any new COVID-19 data on Monday, but the latest numbers released on Oct. 30 said the province has seen a total of 27,664 infections and 323 deaths.
A total of 178,9173 tests have been conducted to date, while 22,169 people have recovered after falling ill.
No new infections or deaths related to COVID-19 were reported in New Brunswick on Monday, meaning the province’s case count remained at 344.
A total of 103,009 people have been tested for the virus, and 305 people have recovered after contracting COVID-19.
Meanwhile, in Nova Scotia, two new cases of the virus were detected, but officials said no new deaths had occurred.
The new infections bring the total case count to 1,113.
So far, 1,033 people have recovered from coronavirus infections, while 113,863 have been tested for the virus.
Prince Edward Island did not release any new COVID-19 data on Monday, but the latest numbers released on Oct. 27 said the province has seen 64 confirmed cases of the virus, all of which are considered to be recovered.
A total of 44,669 people had been tested as of Tuesday.
In Newfoundland and Labrador, no new infections or deaths were detected, meaning the province’s case count remained at 291.
So far, Newfoundland has seen four deaths associated with the virus.
To date, 284 people have recovered from COVID-19 infections, while 52,844 tests have been administered.
Territories
Health officials in the Yukon did not report any new coronavirus data on Monday.
The latest data released on Friday said the territory has seen 23 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and one death.
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So far, 17 people have recovered after contracting the virus in the Yukon, while 4,053 tests have been administered.
In the Northwest Territories, the number of confirmed cases remained at 10 on Monday.
Eight of those cases are considered to be recovered.
The territory has not yet seen a death associated with the virus, and has administered 6,506 tests since the pandemic began.
Meanwhile, Nunavut still considers itself to be COVID-19-free.
Global cases approach 47 million
The total number of novel coronavirus cases around the world approached 47 million on Monday.
By 6 p.m. ET, there were 46,838,194 confirmed cases globally, according to a tally from Johns Hopkins University.
Since the virus was first detected in Wuhan, China late last year, it has claimed 1,204,003 lives.
The United States remained the epicentre of the virus on Monday, with more than 9.2 million cases, and 231,353 fatalities.
VANCOUVER – Contract negotiations resume today in Vancouver in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia’s ports since Monday.
The BC Maritime Employers Association and International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 are scheduled to meet for the next three days in mediated talks to try to break a deadlock in negotiations.
The union, which represents more than 700 longshore supervisors at ports, including Vancouver, Prince Rupert and Nanaimo, has been without a contract since March last year.
The latest talks come after employers locked out workers in response to what it said was “strike activity” by union members.
The start of the lockout was then followed by several days of no engagement between the two parties, prompting federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon to speak with leaders on both sides, asking them to restart talks.
MacKinnon had said that the talks were “progressing at an insufficient pace, indicating a concerning absence of urgency from the parties involved” — a sentiment echoed by several business groups across Canada.
In a joint letter, more than 100 organizations, including the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Business Council of Canada and associations representing industries from automotive and fertilizer to retail and mining, urged the government to do whatever it takes to end the work stoppage.
“While we acknowledge efforts to continue with mediation, parties have not been able to come to a negotiated agreement,” the letter says. “So, the federal government must take decisive action, using every tool at its disposal to resolve this dispute and limit the damage caused by this disruption.
“We simply cannot afford to once again put Canadian businesses at risk, which in turn puts Canadian livelihoods at risk.”
In the meantime, the union says it has filed a complaint to the Canada Industrial Relations Board against the employers, alleging the association threatened to pull existing conditions out of the last contract in direct contact with its members.
“The BCMEA is trying to undermine the union by attempting to turn members against its democratically elected leadership and bargaining committee — despite the fact that the BCMEA knows full well we received a 96 per cent mandate to take job action if needed,” union president Frank Morena said in a statement.
The employers have responded by calling the complaint “another meritless claim,” adding the final offer to the union that includes a 19.2 per cent wage increase over a four-year term remains on the table.
“The final offer has been on the table for over a week and represents a fair and balanced proposal for employees, and if accepted would end this dispute,” the employers’ statement says. “The offer does not require any concessions from the union.”
The union says the offer does not address the key issue of staffing requirement at the terminals as the port introduces more automation to cargo loading and unloading, which could potentially require fewer workers to operate than older systems.
The Port of Vancouver is the largest in Canada and has seen a number of labour disruptions, including two instances involving the rail and grain storage sectors earlier this year.
A 13-day strike by another group of workers at the port last year resulted in the disruption of a significant amount of shipping and trade.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
The Royal Canadian Legion says a new partnership with e-commerce giant Amazon is helping boost its veterans’ fund, and will hopefully expand its donor base in the digital world.
Since the Oct. 25 launch of its Amazon.ca storefront, the legion says it has received nearly 10,000 orders for poppies.
Online shoppers can order lapel poppies on Amazon in exchange for donations or buy items such as “We Remember” lawn signs, Remembrance Day pins and other accessories, with all proceeds going to the legion’s Poppy Trust Fund for Canadian veterans and their families.
Nujma Bond, the legion’s national spokesperson, said the organization sees this move as keeping up with modern purchasing habits.
“As the world around us evolves we have been looking at different ways to distribute poppies and to make it easier for people to access them,” she said in an interview.
“This is definitely a way to reach a wider number of Canadians of all ages. And certainly younger Canadians are much more active on the web, on social media in general, so we’re also engaging in that way.”
Al Plume, a member of a legion branch in Trenton, Ont., said the online store can also help with outreach to veterans who are far from home.
“For veterans that are overseas and are away, (or) can’t get to a store they can order them online, it’s Amazon.” Plume said.
Plume spent 35 years in the military with the Royal Engineers, and retired eight years ago. He said making sure veterans are looked after is his passion.
“I’ve seen the struggles that our veterans have had with Veterans Affairs … and that’s why I got involved, with making sure that the people get to them and help the veterans with their paperwork.”
But the message about the Amazon storefront didn’t appear to reach all of the legion’s locations, with volunteers at Branch 179 on Vancouver’s Commercial Drive saying they hadn’t heard about the online push.
Holly Paddon, the branch’s poppy campaign co-ordinator and bartender, said the Amazon partnership never came up in meetings with other legion volunteers and officials.
“I work at the legion, I work with the Vancouver poppy office and I go to the meetings for the Vancouver poppy campaign — which includes all the legions in Vancouver — and not once has this been mentioned,” she said.
Paddon said the initiative is a great idea, but she would like to have known more about it.
The legion also sells a larger collection of items at poppystore.ca.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
