A day after Peterborough’s medical officer of health Dr. Thomas Piggott called out “threatening antivaxxers” on Twitter for protesting outside of the health unit’s offices in downtown Peterborough, a small group of them showed up in front of his East City home on Saturday afternoon (January 15).

Several of Dr. Piggott’s neighbours contacted kawarthaNOW about the protest, which initially saw 20 to 30 people gather on the sidewalk in a residential neighbourhood while carrying signs reading “Giving Experimental Drugs to Children is Child Abuse” and “Think Bio-Weapon” among others. The crowd eventually dwindled to around 15 people.

Photos posted on social media by one of the protestors show signs reading “You didn’t like our protest at PPH so … here we are!” and “Hands off our kids Piggott!” The signs appear to have been placed on the porch of Dr. Piggott’s home, but kawarthaNOW cannot confirm this is the case.

At least one resident of the usually quiet neighbourhood told kawarthaNOW they called the police. Another resident told kawarthaNOW three police cars arrived at the scene before the protestors eventually dispersed.

It is also unknown where Dr. Piggott and his family were home at the time of the protest, and if any of the protestors were ticketed, but a number of police officers remained on the scene after the protestors left.

On Saturday evening, Dr. Piggott posted on Twitter that he and his family are “fine” and apologized to his neighbours, “many of whom I haven’t even had the pleasure to meet yet,” before concluding with “Spread more love not COVID.”

Thank you everyone for the kind words & ? – we are all fine.
I'm deeply sorry to my #ptbo neighbours, many of whom I haven't even had the pleasure to meet yet, who had to endure that.
Spread more love not COVID.

— Dr Thomas Piggott (He/Him) (@twpiggott) January 16, 2022

Earlier on Saturday evening, Peterborough-Kawartha MP Michelle Ferreri also posted on Twitter about the protest:

“I have just been informed of protests being held in front of the home of Peterborough’s Medical Officer of Health,” she wrote. “I want to be clear, I condemn this behaviour. When protests turn into personal attacks on our public health workers, a line must be drawn.”

“I urge my constituents to exercise your rights peacefully; void of harassment and intimidation. Leave the home out of it. Period. We must continue to stand firm in our shared support of Peterborough’s public health care workers in order to ensure their safety at home.”

2/2 I urge my constituents to exercise your rights peacefully; void of harassment and intimidation. Leave the home out of it. Period. We must continue to stand firm in our shared support of Peterborough’s public health care workers in order to ensure their safety at home.

— Michelle Ferreri (@mferreriptbokaw) January 15, 2022

The protest in front of Dr. Piggott’s home appears to be a reaction to comments he made on Twitter on Friday afternoon (January 14), while a group of around 25 people were protesting in from of Peterborough Public Health on King Street.

Dr. Piggott wrote that “instead of focusing on protecting the public’s health and responding to this pandemic my [Peterborough Public Health] team and I are ensuring our staff and building is safe from the threatening antivaxxers protesting out front.”

He also wrote, “Enough already. Everyone has the right to expressing their beliefs, no matter how wrong they may be. But not at our expense. Healthcare workers and public health need protection and can’t be the site of these terrorizing demonstrations.”

Gotta love Friday's where instead of focusing on protecting the public's health and responding to this pandemic my @Ptbohealth team and I are ensuring our staff and building is safe from the threatening antivaxxers protesting out front.

— Dr Thomas Piggott (He/Him) (@twpiggott) January 14, 2022

This story has been updated with additional information about the number of protestors, Dr. Piggott’s reaction on Twitter to the protest, and MP Michelle Ferreri’s reaction on Twitter to the protest.

Environment Canada has issued winter storm warnings or snowfall warnings for the entire greater Kawarthas region, forecasting heavy snow on Sunday night (January 16) into Monday.

A winter storm warning is in effect for Peterborough County, northern Hastings County, and Northumberland County, with a snowfall warning in effect for Kawartha Lakes and Haliburton County.

A low pressure system tracking south of the Great Lakes will bring significant snowfall to the region on Monday. Heavy snow will likely significantly impact the Monday morning commute. Local blowing snow is also possible Monday afternoon and evening with gusty northerly to northwesterly winds.

Snowfall accumulation will vary depending on the location, with Environment Canada forecasting the following amounts:

• 25 to 40 cm for Northumberland County, including Cobourg and Port Hope, with peak snowfall rates of 2 to 5 cm per hour are possible Monday morning into Monday afternoon.
• 25 cm for Peterborough County, including Apsley, Peterborough, and Lakefield, with peak snowfall rates of 2 to 4 cm per hour possible Monday morning into Monday afternoon.
• 25 cm for northern Hastings County, including Bancroft, with peak snowfall rates of 2 to 4 cm per hour possible Monday morning into Monday afternoon.
• 15 to 20 cm southern Kawartha Lakes, including Lindsay, with peak snowfall rates of 2 to 3 cm per hour possible Monday morning into Monday afternoon.
• 15 cm for northern Kawartha Lakes, including Fenelon Falls, with peak snowfall rates of 2 to 4 cm per hour possible Monday morning into Monday afternoon.
• 15 cm for Haliburton County, with peak snowfall rates up to 2 cm per hour possible Monday morning into Monday afternoon.

Rapidly accumulating snow could make travel difficult over some locations. Poor weather conditions may contribute to transportation delays, Consider postponing non-essential travel until conditions improve.

Visibility may be suddenly reduced at times in heavy snow. Surfaces such as highways, roads, walkways, and parking lots may become difficult to navigate due to accumulating snow.

Take frequent breaks and avoid strain when clearing snow.

This story has been updated with the latest forecast from Environment Canada.

Environment Canada has issued another extreme cold warning for all of the greater Kawartha region for Friday night (January 14) into the weekend.

Temperatures are forecast to rapidly fall through the day on Friday. As a result, by Friday evening wind chill values near -30°C are forecast to develop in the southern Kawarthas region, including Peterborough County, Kawartha Lakes, and Northumberland County, with wind chill values near -35°C in the northern Kawarthas region, including Haliburton County and northern Hastings County.

As temperatures fall even lower Friday night, even colder wind chill values near -35°C in the southern Kawarthas region and -40°C in the northern Kawarthas region are likely into early Saturday morning.

After moderating somewhat Saturday afternoon as winds ease, extreme cold wind chill values as low as -30°C in the southern Kawarthas region and -35°C in the northern Kawarthas region may return for a few areas Saturday night into Sunday morning.

Extreme cold puts everyone at risk, but infants, elderly people, people with circulatory problems, and people who are marginally housed are especially vulnerable.

If going outside, dress in layers (including a wind-resistant outer layer). Cover up exposed skin, as frostbite can develop within 10 to 30 minutes on exposed skin, especially with wind chill.

Consider re-scheduling outdoor recreational activities, especially during the evening. There is a serious risk of hypothermia and frostbite if outdoors for long periods.

Remember: if it’s too cold for you to stay outside, it’s too cold for your pet to stay outside.

The Peterborough region has seen a disturbing rise in the number of COVID-related deaths in 2022, with 10 deaths having occurred since January 1 — five of those this week alone. That amounts to almost a third of the total 35 deaths since the pandemic began almost two years ago.

During a Peterborough Public Health virtual media briefing held Thursday (January 13), medical officer of health Dr. Thomas Piggott said six of the people who have died this year had the delta variant, while the remainder were bring treated for the omicron variant.

“Four of those individuals were unvaccinated,” he said. “Six had received a vaccine, either two or three doses. The average age was 76 years old, but it ranged from in their 40s to in their 90s. Of concern, the youngest individual in their 40s who passed away was unvaccinated. Seven of the 10 individuals that we have had pass away had passed away in hospital and three in long-term care settings.”

Of the 10 vaccinated people who died from COVID-19, four had received two doses and two had been fully immunized with three doses. Dr. Piggott said the fact that most of the deaths were among people who had received vaccinations is “not surprising,” given the majority of people are now vaccinated.

“The fact that four of these 10 (deaths) were unvaccinated is a much, much higher rate, given that only one in 10 people in the public are not vaccinated now,” he pointed out.

Dr. Lynn Mikula, executive vice-president and chief of staff at Peterborough Regional Health Centre (PRHC), also attended the virtual media briefing. While acknowledging the recent increase in local COVID-related deaths is disturbing, she said “This is largely a question of math.”

“We haven’t seen anything close to this number of infections,” she said. “Even with a large percentage of the population vaccinated, there are so many cases out there. If you just do the math, even with a smaller percentage of deaths, these numbers are going to up in the way that we’re seeing. There’s an awful lot of COVID circulating.”

At PRHC, the pandemic is taking an increasingly difficult toll. According to Dr. Mikula, as of Thursday morning, there were 32 patients with COVID admitted, three of those in the ICU with critical illness. In addition, the hospital is dealing with outbreaks in three units.

Not helping matters is the number of hospital staff unavailable to work due to either having COVID or isolating because of a close contact. Earlier this week, that number was reported as being close to 200. But despite the staffing pressures the hospital is experiencing, Dr. Mikula assured the public that all patients requiring urgent care will be seen in quick fashion and receive the medical attention they need.

“These are, by far, the highest numbers we’ve seen at any point in this pandemic,” said Dr. Mikula, “Our biggest constraint is staffing, not space. Not physical beds, not rooms.”

While the number of COVID-related deaths has shown a sharp spike upwards, the number of confirmed active cases has actually dipped to 1,072 from 1,111 one week ago. As of 4 p.m. on Wednesday, 185 new COVID cases had been confirmed this week.

However, Dr. Piggott noted, the number of actual cases is higher due to changes in the PCR testing criteria that sees only prioritized individuals being tested.

Meanwhile, new outbreaks continue to be declared regularly with 19 outbreaks, accounting for a total of 192 cases, currently active. Nine of those are related to congregate living settings in the community. Outbreaks are also reported at Royal Gardens Retirement Residence, Rubidge Retirement Residence, St. Joseph’s at Fleming, Fairhaven Long-Term Care, Riverview Manor, Extendicare Lakefield, St. Paul Elementary Catholic School, and the three aforementioned outbreaks at PRHC.

With public health officials continuing their plea that all get vaccinated or receive their booster shot as soon as possible, Dr. Piggott said he’s relatively pleased with local vaccination progress, with more than 300,000 total doses administered.

As of late Wednesday afternoon, 86.8 per cent of those 18 and older eligible for a vaccine had received two doses and 49.4 per cent had received three doses. Meanwhile, 48.4 per cent of children aged five to 11 have received one dose — a number that’s particularly relevant in relation to the return to in-class learning on Monday (January 17).

“I know there’s a lot of trepidation and uncertainty amongst people,” said Dr. Piggott on the reopening of schools. “There’s a lot of messaging in the media and on social media that makes this to be a black-and-white issue: schools are dangerous, schools are safe.”

“The reality is it’s a grey area. When we look at risk, it’s a formula based on the hazard of something and the exposure that somebody can have to that hazard. Risk is different for everyone. It’s different for me. It’s different for you. It’s a personalized issue. For kids, the hazard is lower. We know that kids are at lower risk of severe COVID-19 infection and hospitalization.”

“Next week as schools go back to in-person learning, there will be transmission. But we know schools are much safer now with better ventilation, with access to rapid antigen tests, and with improved and tighter-fitting masks. But there will be cases of COVID in our schools. At the end of the day, it’s parents making a personal decision (whether to have their children return to school).”

Also participating in the media briefing were Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith, Peterborough County Warden J. Murray Jones, and Selwyn mayor and Board of Health chair Andy Mitchell.

Staff and students in Ontario public schools will each receive two rapid antigen tests when they return to in-person learning on Monday (January 17), the Ontario government has announced.

The tests will be first distributed to staff in child care and public schools, children in child care settings, and students in public elementary schools, followed by secondary school students.

Over 3.9 million of the tests are being shipped to school boards this week, the government says, with additional tests to be delivered next week. If COVID-19 symptoms develop while staff or students are at school, they will be required to take the two rapid tests, 24 hours apart, and upon negative results can return to class.

“We believe so strongly that children need to be in school, that they are essential to the mental and physical health of a child and to their academic success,” said education minister Stephen Lecce during a media conference at Queen’s Park on Wednesday (January 12), which was also attended by Ontario’s chief medical officer of health Dr. Kieran Moore.

“Ontario’s plan to open and protect schools is focused on deploying millions of rapid tests to our schools and our child care centres, enhancing ventilation and high-quality PPE, along with increasing access to children on a voluntary basis and staff,” Lecce said.

The government will also be launching school-based vaccine clinics to encourage more vaccinations among children, with parental consent, and has asked school boards to work with local public health units to add vaccination clinics for students during the school day. While more 82 per cent of children 12 to 17 have received two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, only 50 per cent of children aged five to 11 having received their first dose.

Parents will receive a form offering the opportunity to provide public health units the authority to vaccinate their child at a school-based vaccine clinic.

Dr. Moore was asked during the media conference why the province is not making COVID-19 vaccinations mandatory in schools, especially given the low uptake among children 5 to 11.

“It is a new vaccine, and as a result of that we want greater experience with it before we ever mandate it,” Dr. Moore said.

Some of the other measures being put in place at schools the government has previously announced, including providing 10 million optional non-fit-tested N95 masks to all education and child care staff and more than four million three-ply masks for students, deploying an additional 3,000 standalone HEPA filter units, and updating screening requirements for students and staff.

The province is also doubling the number of retired teachers who can work at schools, temporarily pausing high-contact extra curricular sports, establishing stricter lunch cohort requirements, and elevating cleaning requirements at all schools.

At a technical briefing held earlier on Wednesday, government officials said schools will now be monitoring student absenteeism rather than reporting on positive test results. That means school principals and public health units will only notify parents of a potential COVID-19 outbreak when around 30 per cent of students at a school are absent.

Schools will also provide public health units with daily updates on staff absences.

Although the government is no longer publicly reporting COVID-19 cases in schools, Dr. Moore said other information about COVID-19 infections in children will be available.

“Key metrics that we will continue to report, and we’re just generating these reports now, are going to be admissions to hospitals for paediatric populations — five to 11, 12 to 17, vaccinated/unvaccinated,” he explained. “We’re preparing those types of reports, so parents can see if there’s severe or adverse outcomes and the proportion of those patents who had to be hospitalized, that will be ongoing, systematically reported at a provincial level and regionally for Ontario.”

“We’re just generating that database now, but I will tell you that the risk of hospitalization is very, very low in Ontario for children,” he added.