TORONTO —
Canada’s first known case of the coronavirus variant first detected in Brazil has been reported in Toronto.
Toronto Public Health (TPH) confirmed the case in a news release issued on Sunday afternoon. TPH said a resident who travelled from Brazil tested positive for the P.1 variant and is now in hospital.
The local public health unit also reported the city’s first case of the South African variant, known as B.1.351, in a Toronto resident with no recent travel history and no known contact with anyone who is a returned traveller.
TPH is investigating a total of 27 confirmed variant of concern cases as of Saturday.
“Scientists and medical professionals are concerned that these variants are more transmissible than the original coronavirus,” TPH said in a statement.
“The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevent (CDC) has indicated that research is ongoing to determine more about these variants to better understand how easily they might be transmitted and the effectiveness of currently authorized vaccines against them.”
There are now two cases of the South African variant confirmed in the province. Last week, health officials reported that the variant was detected in a man in Mississauga. Officials said the case had no known connection to travel and that it was likely acquired in the community.
Additionally, there are 174 cases of the B.1.1.7 variant, which was first detected in the United Kingdom, in the province. Ontario modellers had said that the B.1.1.7 variant will become the dominant strain in the province by March.
According to a report from Public Health Ontario released last week, more than five percent of Ontario’s COVID-19 cases on Jan. 20 were from variants of concern.
Of the 1,880 positive samples from that day that were analyzed, 103, or 5.5 per cent, were confirmed or highly likely to be either the UK B.1.1.7 or South African B.1.353 variants of concern.
Public Health Ontario ramped up capacity to screen all positive COVID-19 tests for known variants last week as part of the Ontario government’s six-part plan to tackle the emergence of variants. Mandatory testing for all international travellers arriving at Pearson airport also began last week.
Speaking to CP24 Sunday evening, infectious diseases specialist Dr. Isaac Bogoch said the new cases of the South African and Brazil variants are concerning.
“Both of those variants of concern really raise a red flag really, and the reason being is that the vaccines don’t have the same degree of efficacy against those variants as they would, for example, against something like the variant discovered in the United Kingdom,” said Bogoch, who is also part of the province’s vaccine distribution task force.
While there are still many unanswered questions about the Brazil variant, he said that its mutations are “somewhat analogous” to B.1.351. This is worrying, Bogoch noted, because some studies have found that some vaccines may be less effective against the South African variant.
On Sunday, South Africa halted its Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine rollout after early trial data found that it appeared to offer only limited protection against mild disease caused by B.1.351. The Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine has not been approved for use in Canada.
“It’s important to note that those vaccines, based on the data that we have available, they still prevent severe illness, they still prevent death, but they don’t have the same level of protection that they would against non-variant strains of COVID-19,” Bogoch said.
“We don’t have all the answers. It’s extremely important to proceed with caution.”
Despite the threat posed by COVID-19 variants, sources said the province is expected to announce this week the gradual reopening of the economy in some areas while extending the stay-at-home order in other regions.
Bogoch hopes officials take a cautious approach in reopening Ontario because he said variants are the “real deal.”
“We know what these variants of concern can do. I know sometimes you might hear people, for lack of a better word, sweep it under the rug and maybe tone down how important they are,” he said. “They are important.”
The doctor said a third wave is preventable as long as cases continue to head in the right direction and better vaccine coverage is put in place.
“We have to have plans in place that even if there is a slow and careful reopening that we’re not going to see a rise in cases,” Bogoch said.
“There’s no reason to have a third wave at all, so let’s do the right thing. Let’s keep those case numbers going down.”
– with files from Chris Herhalt, The Canadian Press, The Associated Press, Reuters
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.
