Essential but forgotten? Youth working in grocery stores, cafés feel the strain.
Have a question about the COVID-19 pandemic? Send your questions to COVID@cbc.ca
Canada’s confirmed count of COVID-19 cases passed the one-million mark on Saturday — 14 months after the country’s first known case was recorded — while the number of vaccine shots administered surpassed six million.
The federal government’s goal was to have six million doses arrive in Canada by the end of the first quarter of the year — a target it met last week.
“We’re expecting millions and millions more doses over the next weeks and months,” Procurement Minister Anita Anand told CBC News on Friday. She reiterated that 44 million vaccine doses are expected to arrive by the end of June.
As of 12:35 p.m. ET on Sunday, Canada had reported 1,002,823 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with 57,399 considered active. A CBC News tally of deaths stood at 23,059.
When asked about the official number of cases, an infectious diseases specialist with Trillium Health Partners in Mississauga, Ont., said, “It’s actually probably much more than a million.”
“It’s anywhere from five to 10 times more than that, because a lot of the time, especially at the beginning of the pandemic, we weren’t actually catching a lot of the cases that were happening,” Dr. Sumon Chakrabarti told CBC News on Sunday.
“Many cases are mild and are not getting tested,” he said. “The point is, this is a respiratory virus … and their job is essentially to infect people, and they do so very very efficiently.”
The two milestones are emblematic of where the nation stands with COVID-19, ramping up its vaccination drive as more contagious variants of the virus fuel the pandemic’s third wave in several parts of Canada.
Alberta, for instance, is investigating what the province’s chief medical officer of health described as a “significant” outbreak of the P1 variant of concern, which is now the dominant strain in Brazil.
Dr. Deena Hinshaw said in a tweet that the outbreak can be traced back to a returning traveller.
“Health officials are working hard to limit future spread and reaching out directly to those at risk of exposure,” she said. “AHS (Alberta Health Services) will ensure that anyone at risk is isolated, offered testing twice and connected with supports if needed.”
WATCH | Should vaccines be redirected to Canada’s COVID-19 hot spots?
Dr. Amit Arya, a palliative care physician, says Ontario’s new shutdown doesn’t get to the root of the problem. He says we need to focus our attention on vaccinating people at warehouses and at homes in hotspots rather than vaccinating by age groups. 7:16
Hinshaw said officials will provide an update on the investigation on Monday.
That province logged an estimated 1,100 new cases of COVID-19 on Saturday, roughly half of which are variants of concern.
Hinshaw said 35 per cent of the province’s active COVID-19 cases are due to those variants, which are more contagious and can cause more serious illness.
WATCH | Doctors bring COVID-19 vaccines to homebound seniors:
Ontario’s Covid-19 science table is pushing for more mobile vaccine units to vaccinate seniors in their homes after new data reveals that 25 per cent of Ontario seniors 75 and older have still not received their first shot because they’re either unwilling or unable to leave home for medical reasons. A look at two doctors leading the charge. 2:03
Meanwhile, the United States had administered 161,688,422 doses of COVID-19 vaccines in the country as of Saturday morning and distributed 207,866,645 doses, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.
The tally is for Moderna, Pfizer/BioNTech, and Johnson & Johnson’s vaccines, the agency said.
The CDC said 104,213,478 people had received at least one dose while 59,858,146 people are fully vaccinated as of Saturday.
What’s happening across Canada
Health officials in British Columbia on Saturday announced 2,090 new cases of COVID-19 in the last two days, but did not provide information about deaths, variants of concern or the number of active cases.
Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix again urged people to stay within their local health authority region to prevent the spread of the respiratory illness.
A total of 856,801 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in B.C. to date, including 87,455 second doses.
WATCH | 2 doctors on how to deal with Canada’s coronavirus 3rd wave:
Infectious disease specialists Dr. Lynora Saxinger and Dr. Zain Chagla discuss the latest restrictions in several provinces and how they’re feeling about where we are in the third wave. 7:54
More drive-thru sites are anticipated to open this week across the province.
The Saskatchewan Health Authority website said the Lloydminster site is expected to open on Sunday, the Saskatoon drive-thru site is anticipated to open on Monday and the Yorkton and Weyburn sites are anticipated to open Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the province has now administered more than 200,000 vaccine doses.
Ontario logged 3,009 new cases as a new provincewide “shutdown” took effect to try to curb soaring infection rates.
The restrictions force gyms and personal care services to close, but allow essential and non-essential retailers to remain open, with their capacities limited to 50 per cent and 25 per cent respectively.
WATCH | ICU doctor says Ontario’s ’emergency brake’ is not enough:
Dr. Michael Warner, medical director of critical care at Michael Garron Hospital in Toronto, says the current restrictions are not enough to protect people who are getting sick in the third wave of the pandemic. Warner says the provincial framework won’t stop young people from getting sick and ending up in intensive care units. With permission, Dr. Warner spoke of one patient in particular who was very ill. She has since died. 5:23
Quebec confirmed 1,154 new cases and nine new deaths on Sunday.
Provincial police are patrolling the streets of the province this weekend, on the lookout for indoor private gatherings. They’re focusing largely on the Quebec City area, where there has been a surge in cases in recent days.
New Brunswick registered 11 new cases on Sunday. The province reported a record-high 14 hospitalizations on Saturday, including six in intensive care. Most of those patients are in the hard-hit Edmundston region, which has seen a recent spike in cases, including spread of the B117 variant.
In the Northwest Territories, an outbreak has been declared at the Diavik Diamond Mine about 300 kilometres northeast of Yellowknife after a second worker tested positive for the virus within a week.
What’s happening around the world
As of Sunday, more than 130.9 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, the U.K. government is planning to launch a vaccine certificate trial over the coming months to determine how mass events can be held safely.
The trial events will include soccer’s FA Cup semi-final and final, the World Snooker Championships, and a comedy club show. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to set out more details on Monday.
The government has said the “status certification system” under development would show whether a person has had a vaccine, a recent negative test or natural immunity from a positive test taken in the previous six months.
Johnson said the trials will play an important role in allowing the “reopening of our country so people can return to the events, travel and other things they love as safely as possible.”
However, dozens of his Conservative Party legislators have opposed the plans, and Johnson could struggle to get Parliament to approve the trials.
In Italy, Pope Francis said Easter Sunday mass under pandemic precautions. Only 200 or so faithful were allowed inside St. Peter’s Basilica to celebrate mass and hear the Urbi et Orbi blessing.
Italian State Police vehicle is seen in an empty St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican on Sunday. (Filippo Monteforte/AFP via Getty Images)
Normally, thousands would gather outside in St. Peter’s Square, with more than 100,000 sometimes assembling to receive the Pope’s special Easter blessing after the mass.
But this year, like last year, crowds are banned from gathering in Italy, and at the Vatican. So Francis scheduled his noon Easter address on world affairs to be delivered from inside the basilica.
In South Asia, India’s COVID-19 tally rose to 12,485,509 by Sunday evening local time as 93,249 new cases were reported from across the country over the past 24 hours, according to figures released by the federal health ministry.
In addition, 513 new deaths were registered in the past 24 hours, taking the country’s death toll to 164,623.
The latest number of new daily confirmed cases marks a record high since late September of last year.
LONGUEUIL, Que. – People in a part of Longueuil, Que., were being asked to stay indoors with their doors and windows closed on Thursday morning after a train derailed, spilling an unknown quantity of hydrogen peroxide.
Police from the city just east of Montreal said it didn’t appear anyone was hurt, although a CN rail official told a news conference that three employees had been taken to hospital as a precautionary measure.
The derailment happened at around 9 a.m. in the LeMoyne area, near the intersection of St-Louis and St-Georges streets. Mathieu Gaudreault, a spokesman for CN rail, said about eight cars derailed at the Southwark rail facility, including four that toppled over.
“As of this morning, the information we have is it’s hydrogen peroxide that was in the rail car and created the fumes we saw,” he said, adding that there was no risk of fire.
François Boucher, a spokesman for the Longueuil police department, said police were asking people in the area, including students at nearby schools, to stay indoors while experts ensure the air is safe to breathe.
“It is as a preventive measure that we encourage people to really avoid exposing themselves unnecessarily,” he told reporters near the scene.
Police and fire officials were on site, as well as CN railworkers, and a large security perimeter was erected.
Officers were asking people to avoid the sector, and the normally busy Highway 116 was closed in the area. The confinement notice includes everyone within 800 metres of the derailment, officials said, who added that it would be lifted once a team with expertise in dangerous materials has given the green light.
In addition to closing doors and windows, people in the area covered by the notice are asked to close heating, ventilation and air exchange systems, and to stay as far from windows as possible.
Gaudreault said it wasn’t yet clear what caused the derailment. The possibilities include a problem with the track, a problem with a manoeuvre, or a mechanical issue, he said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 14, 2024.
HALIFAX – Nova Scotia’s Liberal party is promising to improve cellphone service and invest in major highways if the party is elected to govern on Nov. 26.
Party leader Zach Churchill says a Liberal government would spend $60 million on building 87 new cellphone towers, which would be in addition to the $66 million the previous Progressive Conservative government committed to similar projects last year.
As well, Churchill confirmed the Liberals want to improve the province’s controlled access highways by adding exits along Highway 104 across the top of the mainland, and building a bypass along Highway 101 near Digby.
Churchill says the Liberals would add $40 million to the province’s $500 million capital budget for highways.
Meanwhile, the leaders of the three major political parties were expected to spend much of today preparing for a televised debate that will be broadcast tonight at 6 p.m. local time.
Churchill will face off against Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Houston and NDP Leader Claudia Chender during a 90-minute debate that will be carried live on CBC TV and streamed online.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 14, 2024.
TORONTO – A group of hotel service workers in Toronto is set to hold a rally today outside the Fairmont Royal York to demand salary increases as hotel costs in the city skyrocket during Taylor Swift’s concerts.
Unite Here Local 75, the union representing 8,000 hospitality workers in the Greater Toronto Area, says Royal York employees have not seen a salary increase since 2021, and have been negotiating a new contract with the hotel since 2022.
The rally comes as the megastar begins her series of six sold-out concerts in Toronto, with the last show scheduled for Nov. 23.
During show weekends, some hotel rooms and short-term rentals in Toronto are priced up to 10 times more than other weekends, with some advertised for as much as $2,000 per night.
The union says hotel workers who will be serving Swifties during her Toronto stops are bargaining for raises to keep up with the rising cost of living.
The union represents hospitality workers including food service employees, room attendants and bell persons.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 14, 2024.
