Today’s coronavirus news: Ontario reporting 328 new cases of COVID-19; Saskatchewan premier apologizes to those left without health care

Star staff,wire services

from on 2021-10-19 10:01 (#5QX2V)

The latest coronavirus news from Canada and around the world Tuesday. This file will be updated throughout the day. Web links to longer stories if available.

2:15 p.m.: Alberta Premier Jason Kenney and health officials are to deliver an update later today on COVID-19.

Kenney is also expected to address the results of Monday's municipal elections, which included new mayors being voted in for the two major cities of Edmonton and Calgary.

Alberta has more than 12,000 active coronavirus cases, the highest in Canada, but case numbers and hospitalization rates have been on the decline.

There are 981 people in hospital with COVID-19, and 225 of them are in intensive care.

The province reported 30 more COVID-19-related deaths on Monday to bring the total to 2,976.

2 p.m. The City of Kingston says 36 people were arrested and more than 100 fines were issued after university students gathered for large, rowdy, unsanctioned parties over the weekend.

The parties were held over Queen's University's homecoming weekend, even though the school opted against holding traditional in-person homecoming events for a second year in a row due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The city says local police arrested 36 people - most for public intoxication - issued 66 fines for provincial offences and laid three criminal charges for obstruction of a peace officer.

Police and the city's bylaw officers also issued dozens of administrative monetary penalties, most of which were for hosting, attending or sponsoring an "aggravated nuisance party."

1:35 p.m. Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe says he's sorry some people have been left without health care as the province redirects resources to deal with its fourth wave of COVID-19.

Moe made the apology on CBC's The Morning Edition radio show, one day after the Saskatchewan Party government announced it is sending six COVID-19 patients to Ontario for care.

Moe says he's sorry people are being impacted by service slowdowns and that his government will do everything it can to resume health-care services.

Over 275 services have been cancelled in Saskatchewan, including all elective surgeries and operations for open-heart and neurology patients.

The province has also suspended its organ donation program.

The Saskatchewan Health Authority says this has freed up more than 175 health-care workers who are caring for COVID-19 patients in hospitals.

1:15 p.m. A Manitoba pastor who was openly violating COVID-19 public health orders has been arrested.

Mounties say officers arrested Tobias Tissen on an outstanding warrant at a traffic stop yesterday in Steinbach, 60 kilometres southeast of Winnipeg,

He is scheduled to be transferred later today into the custody of the Winnipeg Police Service.

Tissen is a pastor at the Church of God Restoration in the Rural Municipality of Hanover.

He has spoken at anti-restriction protests and, in May, posted on social media that an arrest warrant had been issued for him for violating orders.

Tissen is also part of a court challenge by seven Manitoba churches that are fighting the province's public health restrictions.

12:35 p.m. Ontario is getting an extra 1.4-million doses of flu vaccines this year, preparing for high demand amid the COVID-19 pandemic as more people getting back to their workplaces and socializing.

Free shots will be available for the general population starting next month, with jabs already underway for nursing-home residents, seniors and others most at risk for complications from the flu, Health Minister Christine Elliott said Tuesday.

The province is getting a total of 7.6-million doses of flu vaccine, and Elliott urged people to get vaccinated through their doctor, nurse practitioner, pharmacy or public health unit clinic. Pharmacies are getting 40 per cent of the supply, an increase from last year.

As we head into the fall and begin gathering indoors more often with family and friends, it is even more important to get your flu shot, in addition to following public health measures, to protect yourself and those around you," chief medical officer Dr. Kieran Moore said.

Read the full story from the Star's Rob Ferguson

12:15 p.m. Prince Edward Island is reporting three new cases of COVID-19.

Chief health officer Dr. Heather Morrison says two of the new cases involve residents in their 50s who have a history of travel outside the province.

The other case involves a person in their 20s and is currently under investigation.

Morrison says she anticipates public exposure notifications related to the third case to be announced later in the day.

As of Oct. 16, more than 92 per cent of eligible Islanders have received at least one dose of a vaccine, while nearly 87 per cent are fully vaccinated.

11:45 p.m. Quebec is reporting 342 new cases of COVID-19 Tuesday and four additional deaths linked to the coronavirus.

It's the lowest number of new daily cases reported in the province since mid-August.

The Health Department says the number of hospitalizations declined by six, to 297, and 75 people are in intensive care, a decline of two.

Quebec's public health institute says 90.2 per cent of residents 12 and over have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 87.2 per cent are considered adequately vaccinated.

The institute says the Chaudiere-Appalaches region, south of Quebec City, is the most affected part of the province, with 121.8 active cases per 100,000 people.

There are 56.6 active cases per 100,000 people in the province.

11 a.m. Nova Scotia is reporting 12 new cases of COVID-19 Tuesday. Health officials have identified eight cases in the Halifax area and four in the province's western zone.

They are also reporting a small outbreak at the Valley Regional Hospital in Kentville, N.S., where three patients in a non-COVID unit have tested positive for the virus.

Two of the three cases are asymptomatic, while one patient is in intensive care.

Officials say as a precaution, testing is being carried out on other patients and staff identified as close contacts.

Nova Scotia has 187 active cases of novel coronavirus, with 14 people in hospital because of the infection, including four in intensive care.

10:30 a.m. U.S. federal regulators are expected to authorize the mixing and matching of COVID-19 booster shots this week in an effort to provide flexibility for those seeking to maintain protection against the coronavirus.

The upcoming announcement by the Food and Drug Administration is likely to come along with authorization for boosters of the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson shots and follows the authorization of a third dose for the Pfizer vaccine for many Americans last month. The move was previewed Tuesday by a U.S. health official familiar with the matter who was not authorized to speak publicly ahead of the announcement.

The FDA was expected to say that, especially for the mRNA vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna that have proved most effective against the virus, maintaining consistency in the vaccine course was still preferable. The agency was still finalizing guidance for the single-shot J&J vaccine.

10:20 a.m. (updated) Ontario is reporting 328 new COVID-19 cases and four deaths from the virus.

Health Minister Christine Elliott says 223 of the infected people are not fully vaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status.

She says 105 of the cases are in fully vaccinated people. Provincial data show there are 159 people intensive care due to COVID-19. That number includes 101 patients on ventilators.

The province says 87 per cent of residents aged 12 and older have one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 83 per cent have both shots.

9:41 a.m. The province is actively working on the COVID-19 vaccination campaign for children between 5-11, which will by led by public health units and could see in-school clinics, Health Minister Christine Elliott says in a Tuesday morning presser.

Elliott says the flu shot will be available for free beginning in November in pharmacies and doctors offices. The province is spending $89 million to purchase 7.6 million flu vaccines.

Elliott says there are now four doctors in Ontario prohibited from giving COVID-19 exemptions.

9:30 a.m. The night before they got married, Newfoundland nurse practitioner Jennifer Richard told her husband-to-be she was going to Alberta.

I'm not surprised," he said, and they proceeded to book her a post-honeymoon flight directly to Fort McMurray.

Thus ended a blissful three-week hiatus, her first chunk of serious time off since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The past 18 months had been a frenetic stretch of ICU work in St. John's, broken only by a foray into Toronto General Hospital in April to help out with third-wave care there.

This past Monday, she said goodbye to her brand-new husband, got on a plane and flew to Fort McMurray, arriving late that night, there to help out in its hospital's newly expanded intensive-care unit.

On Tuesday morning, she began the first of four straight 12-hour shifts.

It's really just eat, sleep and work," Richard says.

On these trips, it's about reprieve for the physicians, reprieve for the nurses, providing them with some support and backup. ... So, we just put our heads down and get to work as soon as we get here."

Read the full story from the Star's Steve McKinley

9:15 a.m. It's time to believe in magic again. After a nearly two-year wait, Torontonians will soon be able to book tickets for the award-winning live stage incarnation of the Harry Potter universe.

The Canadian premiere of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child" was originally planned for October 2020 but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It features an all-Canadian cast, with Vancouver-born Trevor White in the title role. Tickets go on sale Dec. 1.

When people ask me what I'm doing next year and I say I'll be playing Harry Potter, they look at me - a middle-aged man - and go, Sorry, you're what?'" said White. Often people don't know of the stage incarnation and are confused."

8:45 a.m. More than 99 per cent of Niagara College's students and staff are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and Brock University is reporting a 95 per cent rate.

The college reported its figure late Monday, which was the deadline for staff and students to either provide proof of inoculation against the coronavirus or be barred from campus until they are fully vaccinated.

Brock, meanwhile, has been operating on an earlier timeline for vaccination.

This summer, the provincial government ordered high-risk settings such as post-secondary institutions, as well as sites such as women's shelters and licensed retirement homes, to implement vaccination plans.

The response has been very positive from students and employees," said Niagara College spokesperson Michael Wales, adding the vast majority" provided proof well before Monday.

8:30 a.m. Peel region is advising those attending separate wedding events at a pair of Mississauga banquet halls on Oct. 8 and 9 to seek immediate testing regardless of vaccination status, while unvaccinated guests are required to self-isolate while awaiting results.

The advisory, issued by the region on Oct. 18, includes wedding events at the Red Rose Convention Centre (1233 Derry Road East) on Oct. 8 from 6-11 p.m., and the Candles Banquet Hall (1224 Dundas St. E, Unit 18) on Oct. 9 from 6:30-11:30 p.m.

Fully vaccinated individuals attending either event, who do not have any symptoms, do not need to isolate; however, they should continue to follow precautions such as masking, physical distancing and limiting contacts while waiting for test results," read a release.

8:15 a.m. Many scientists are pressing the British government to re-impose social restrictions and speed up booster vaccinations as coronavirus infection rates, already Europe's highest, rise still further.

The U.K. recorded 49,156 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, the largest number since mid-July. New infections averaged 43,000 a day over the past week, a 15 per cent increase on the week before.

Last week, the Office for National Statistics estimated that 1 in 60 people in England had the virus, one of the highest levels seen in Britain during the pandemic.

In July, Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government lifted all the legal restrictions that had been imposed more than a year earlier to slow the spread of the virus, including face coverings indoors and social distancing rules. Nightclubs and other crowded venues were allowed to open at full capacity, and people were no longer advised to work from home if they could.

8 a.m. Russia registered another daily record of coronavirus deaths Tuesday as rapidly surging contagion raised pressure on the country's health care system.

The government task force reported 1,015 coronavirus deaths over the past 24 hours, the highest number since the start of the pandemic. That brought the total death toll to 225,325 - by far the highest in Europe. It also registered 33,740 new infections over the past day.

The daily coronavirus mortality numbers have been surging for weeks and topped 1,000 for the first time over the weekend amid sluggish vaccination rates and the government's reluctance to toughen restrictions.

Russian authorities have tried to speed up the pace of vaccinations with lotteries, bonuses and other incentives, but widespread vaccine skepticism and conflicting signals from officials have hampered the efforts. The task force said Monday that about 45 million Russians, or 32 per cent of the country's nearly 146 million people, are fully vaccinated.

7:52 p.m. Latvia will enter into a nearly monthlong lockdown, including a curfew, on Thursday due to the worsening coronavirus situation in the Baltic country where the vaccination rate is among the lowest in the European Union.

Following an emergency government meeting late Monday, Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins said that the lockdown from Oct. 21 until Nov. 15 and accompanying drastic measures are needed as the pandemic continues to spread quickly, causing hospital wards to fill up with COVID-19 patients amid scarce health care resources.

Only slightly over half of Latvians are now fully vaccinated, and Karins admitted that his government had failed in sufficiently luring citizens to get jabs.

There are many people, too many people, who are not vaccinated," Karins said, as quoted by the Latvian public broadcaster LSM.

7:30 p.m. Toronto Public Health has identified 2+ COVID-19 cases linked within Michael Power - St Joseph High School, Africentric Alternative School and John McCrae Public School. Outbreaks have been declared in those schools.

We're carefully investigating & following our process of working w/our school community to notify close contacts & ask them to stay home, monitor for symptoms & get tested," TPS tweeted Monday evening.

7:25 a.m. Students at Etobicoke's Silverthorn Collegiate Institute are heading back to class on Tuesday.

A week ago, Toronto Public Health (TPH) suspended in-person learning at the Markland Wood high school due to a COVID-19 outbreak involving 11 students.

The city's public health agency said nine of those cases were linked to student-to-student transmission" and recommended everyone at the school get tested for the virus. The health unit has since followed up with close contacts.

The first active COVID-19 case at Silverthorn CI was reported on Oct. 4 and some Grade 11 students had to self-isolate at home.

7:20 a.m. On the eve of Singapore dropping quarantine restrictions for vaccinated travelers from the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the State Department warned Americans not to visit the country.

Both the CDC and State Department cited a "very high level of COVID-19" in Singapore.

According to Johns Hopkins University data, the Southeast Asia country has had a record high 70,374 COVID cases in the last 28 days. Just over 82% of Singapore is fully vaccinated. That's compared to more than 57% of the U.S., which has recorded more than 2.8 million cases over the same period.

Starting Tuesday, travelers from the U.S. can enter Singapore as long as they show proof of vaccination and they test negative on two PCR tests: once 48 hours before departure and again upon arrival.

The State Department on Monday also urged Americans to reconsider travel to Poland, Hungary, Cyprus, Tunisia and Angola due to areas with "increased risk" of COVID-19.

6:20 a.m.: The federal government is sending more help to the Northwest Territories to deal with a spike in COVID-19 cases.

Public Safety Minister Bill Blair says Ottawa has approved a request from the territory to provide surge capacity support" for infection prevention and control, contact tracing and testing.

The support - 10 specialists from the Canadian Red Cross - will be effective until Nov. 14, with the possibility of a two-week extension.

That's on top of previous help provided through the Public Health Agency of Canada and Statistics Canada for infection control and contact tracing.

After months of zero new cases of COVID-19, the territory began seeing a spike in cases in mid-August.

As of Monday, there were 263 active cases in the Northwest Territories, which last week extended a territory-wide public health emergency until Oct. 26.

5:45 a.m.: Russia registered another daily record of coronavirus deaths Tuesday as rapidly surging contagion raised pressure on the country's health care system.

Russian authorities have tried to speed up the pace of vaccinations with lotteries, bonuses and other incentives, but widespread vaccine skepticism and conflicting signals from officials have hampered the efforts. The task force said Monday that about 45 million Russians, or 32% of the country's nearly 146 million people, are fully vaccinated.

The Kremlin has ruled out a new nationwide lockdown like the one early on in the pandemic that dealt a heavy blow to the economy and eroded President Vladimir Putin's popularity. It has empowered authorities acros the country's 11 time zones to decide on restrictions depending on the local situation.

5:30 a.m.: Many scientists are pressing the British government to re-impose social restrictions and speed up booster vaccinations as coronavirus infection rates, already Europe's highest, rise still further.

The U.K. recorded 49,156 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, the largest number since mid-July. New infections averaged 43,000 a day over the past week, a 15% increase on the week before.

Last week, the Office for National Statistics estimated that 1 in 60 people in England had the virus, one of the highest levels seen in Britain during the pandemic.

Some modelers feared a big spike in cases after the opening-up. That did not occur, but infections remained high, and recently have begun to increase.

So have hospitalizations and deaths, which are averaging more than 100 a day - far lower than when cases were last this high, before much of the population was vaccinated, but still too high, critics of the government say.

Some say Britons have been too quick to return to pre-pandemic behavior. Masks and social distancing are gone in most settings in England, including schools, though other parts of the U.K. remain a bit more strict. Even in shops, where masks are recommended, and on the London transit network, where they are mandatory, adherence is patchy.

A plan to require proof of vaccination to attend nightclubs, concerts and other mass events in England was dropped by the Conservative government amid opposition from lawmakers, though Scotland introduced a vaccine pass program this month.

5 a.m.: Ontario's QR-code vaccine certificates have arrived early, but while the system does speed up the process of vetting customers at gyms and restaurants, experts are concerned that the new system does nothing to help prevent fraud.

The Star reported in September that Ontario's initial vaccine certificate could be easily doctored in Microsoft Word. Business owners responsible for checking the certificates worried they would be on the hook if they failed to spot a fake.

Now, even though the QR-code vaccine certificates are available, the original certificates will still be accepted as proof of COVID-19 vaccination.

Kris Klein, a lawyer with nNovation LLP and an expert on privacy, access to information and information security, thinks it's a real shame and potentially very dangerous" that Ontarians can still use an easily edited vaccine certificate to access gyms, restaurants and other venues.

Given the percentage of the population that has yet to be vaccinated, I'm afraid there will be some fraud with respect to vaccine receipts," said Klein in an email. I think the government should do better to recognize that fraudsters are out there and they should implement safeguards to try and stop them."

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