Ontario health officials have announced that a “presumptive” case of coronavirus has been discovered in Toronto, which if confirmed would mark the first instance of the illness in Canada.
In an evening press conference at Queen’s Park, officials said they were made aware of the case Saturday afternoon.
A man in his 50s tested positive for the virus but secondary testing at Canada’s National Microbiology Laboratory will occur to confirm the case.
The victim recently travelled to Wuhan, China, which is believed to be the epicentre of the outbreak.
His condition is stable and he is being treated at Sunnybrook Hospital, officials said.
“The patient was detected and immediately put in isolation,” Ontario Health Minister Christine Elliott said.
“Lab tests were conducted and at the earliest signs of a presumptive positive case, Toronto Public Health launched extensive case and contact management to prevent and control further spread of the infection.”
Elliott said officials are working to identify everyone who the victim was in contact with in order to contain the virus.
Officials said any close household contact “has been put into self isolation.”
“Ontarians can rest assured that the province’s integrated health-care system today is far more prepared to respond to any potential health risks than in the past,” Elliott said.
“We will continue to diligently monitor this issue to ensure Ontario remains prepared to identify, contain, and treat any additional cases of this virus.”
Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Williams said the patient arrived in Toronto on Jan. 22 after flying from Wuhan with a connection in Guangzhou, China.
Williams said the patient had a family member call 911, at which point they told officials about his symptoms.
“A pair of ambulance services went fully protected,” Williams said.
The man was transported to Sunnybrook hospital on Jan. 23.
Toronto Mayor John Tory responded to the news of the case in a statement Saturday evening.
“While we now have one presumptive confirmed case, our health officials are clear that the risk to residents continues to remain low,” he said in part.
“Toronto Public Health is continuing to work closely with provincial and federal health colleagues to actively monitor the situation and respond as appropriate.”
The illness has sickened more than 1,200 people and killed at least 41 in China.
Australia and Malaysia reported their first cases Saturday — four each– and Japan, its third.
France confirmed three cases Friday, the first in Europe, and the U.S. identified its second, a woman in Chicago who had returned from China.
– With files from the Canadian Press
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