The latest:
Ontario‘s daily COVID-19 case count is back up over 3,000 as new public health measures take effect across the province.
Government figures released Saturday show 3,009 new virus infections today and 3,089 yesterday. (The province paused data sharing for the Good Friday holiday.)
Ontario also recorded 39 new deaths linked to COVID-19 over the 48-hour stretch.
A province-wide “shutdown” that shutters personal services and suspends in-person dining at Ontario restaurants went into effect early this morning. Both essential and non-essential retailers can stay open with capacity limits of 50 and 25 per cent, respectively, while schools will stay open during the 28-day shutdown.
What’s happening across Canada
As of 2 p.m. ET on Saturday, Canada had reported 998,181 cases of COVID-19, with 53,855 cases considered active. A CBC News tally of deaths stood at 23,051.
In British Columbia, health officials have expanded vaccine access and eligibility for residents in small, remote communities on Vancouver Island.
Island Health now says any adult over 18 in Tofino, Ucluelet, Port Hardy, Port McNeill and Port Alice can now request a spot.
Manitoba logged 181 new COVID-19 cases and one additional death on Saturday.
Quebec confirmed 1,282 new cases and three new deaths.
A group of physicians, infectious disease specialists and other health experts say the Quebec government needs to shut down the Montreal region, before the spread of coronavirus variants spirals out of control.
New Brunswick registered nine new cases, of which seven are in the hard-hit Edmundston region. Hundreds of residents of the region are scheduled to be vaccinated at community clinics over the weekend.
Nova Scotia saw four new infections, bringing the province’s active case total to 32.
What’s happening around the world
As of Saturday, more than 130.3 million cases of COVID-19 had been reported worldwide, according to a coronavirus tracking tool maintained by U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University. The global death toll stood at more than 2.84 million.
In Europe, Italy has entered a three-day strict nationwide lockdown to deter Easter travel and help prevent new surges of the coronavirus. Police set up road checks to ensure people were staying close to home. Extra patrols were ordered up to break up large gatherings in squares and parks, which over Easter weekend are usually packed with picnic goers.
In Asia, South Korea’s daily increase in coronavirus infections exceeded 500 for the fourth straight day, a pace unseen since January, as experts raise concern about another viral surge amid a slow rollout in vaccines. South Korean officials have insisted they could afford a wait-and-see approach on vaccines as the country’s outbreak isn’t as dire as in the United States or Europe.
In the Americas, Argentine President Alberto Fernandez says he had an initial positive test for coronavirus, despite having been vaccinated with the Sputnik V vaccine in January. The Russian Gamaleya Institute, which produced the vaccine, tweeted the shot has a 91.6 per cent rate of effectiveness against infection and 100 per cent against critical cases.
In Africa, Kenya has ordered a suspension on private importations of vaccines. Private health facilities have been charging about $80 US for the Russian Sputnik V vaccine, while the governments institutions are giving free AstraZeneca vaccines received from the global COVAX initiative
