Cooking and baking is a passion for newcomer Jessie Iriwanto, who first came to Canada from Indonesia as a student 14 years ago. So it’s no surprise she has a recipe for rendang, a signature dish in Indonesian culture, that she’s adapted for her new home country.

The rich beef dish-slow-cooked and braised in coconut milk seasoned with a herb and spice mixture-has a significant meaning in Indonesian culture, being traditionally served at ceremonious occasions and in honour of important guests.

It was even voted the best food in the world according to CNN’s World’s Best Foods.

“It is the most popular dish in Indonesia,” Jessie says, explaining the history of the dish. “The combination of the spices and the coconut has a preservative effect. It would have a long shelf life without any refrigeration required. People were able to bring the dish when they had to travel a long distance.”

Jessie originally arrived in Canada in 2007 as an international student attending high school in Hamilton. She then attended Trent University for her undergraduate degree, where she met her future husband Dmitry, a fellow international student from Russia.

After completing her MBA at Ontario Tech University in Oshawa, Jessie decided to return to Peterborough, where she now has a job working for Trent University’s graduate studies department.

She says she truly began to regard Canada as her new home about seven years ago, when she and Dmitry got married and resolved to stay in Peterborough.

“Before that, we were just not sure really where to call home,” Jessie recalls. “Should we go back to Indonesia? Or should I follow him back to Russia? Or should we explore a new country?”

“Once we made up our mind to stay in Canada, we slowly settled down and made ourselves comfortable with the culture and lifestyle here,” she explains. “With time, we now have our own social network which grows bigger and bigger, and we just blend into Canadian culture more and more.”

The friendly community of Peterborough played a significant part in Jessie’s decision to regard the city as her home. She recalls a story of her neighbour’s friendliness as an example of the gestures that assisted her in feeling a sense of belonging in Peterborough.

“It was a couple of years ago and we had just had a big storm,” Jessie says. “We couldn’t get out of our driveway for a few days. Our lovely neighbour came and knocked on our door and checked on us. It was really nice of him and very comforting. It made us feel safe and like we belong in this community. I can say now that both of us will agree that Canada is our home.”

When Jessie first arrived in Peterborough to study at Trent University, she also became involved with New Canadians Centre (NCC). The organization, where she ended up volunteering and even working for a year, played a big part in helping her adjust to life in Canada.

“Many of their events help newcomers to get familiar with Canadian culture and to ease the transition,” Jessie explains. “From those events, I got to know a lot of people, and we became friends. The staff are really helpful and friendly as well. I feel like I’m not alone and, if I have any issues, I know that NCC staff are there and able to help.”

Although she says she still sometimes experiences loneliness as the rest of her family remains overseas, Jessie is grateful to have newcomer friends here to gather with, especially on holidays. However, with restrictions on social gatherings due to COVID-19, the past year has been a little more difficult.

“We have a group of friends that I hang out with in Peterborough that consist of Malaysians, Singaporeans, and Indonesians, and now we are no longer able to do that,” she explains. “They are basically like our second family, and now we are unable to meet. We still get in touch via phone or text message to give updates, but it just feels different.”

To help deal with the isolation, Jessie and her husband Dmitry have turned to cooking as a hobby, with the goal of cooking a new dish from a different country once a month.

“Last month we cooked chicken chow mein, and this month we had beef gyros,” Jessie recalls. “My husband is thinking of cooking a dish from Russia for next month.”

Jessie loves to explore different foods from around the world-something she has done a lot in Canada.

“I had a lot of my first attempts of food in Canada,” she explains. “Not only Canadian food like poutine or Nanaimo bars, but other nationalities’ food like souvlaki or pierogis.”

The ability to try so many different foods from so many different cultures represents what Canada means to Jessie: diversity and openness.

It was that love of trying new foods that grew into a passion for cooking, Jessie explains, since if she wanted to try certain dishes she would have to make them. Now she cooks and often bakes as well, posting pictures on her social media pages in recognition of how food can connect people especially during a pandemic.

“Sharing recipes allows me to connect with people,” Jessie notes. “It’s a conversation starter. When I share on my Instagram or Facebook, friends who have not been in touch with me for quite some time will sometimes comment on my picture and ask a question about it. It feels great.”

Jessie Iriwanto’s Beef Rendang Recipe

In that spirit of connection and of sharing a taste of Indonesian culture, Jessie is excited to share her rendang recipe with kawarthaNOW readers.

She has adapted the traditional rendang recipe for Canada, since fresh coconut milk, galangal, and turmeric are more challenging to find in local grocery stores. However, Jessie says her Canadian version is very close to the original, with the switch to packaged coconut milk and powdered herbs and spices not changing the taste too much.

“It makes me happy and proud that I am able to share it,” Jessie says. “It is like introducing part of my culture to people here in Canada.”

The #CookWithNCC series was created in partnership with the New Canadians Centre (NCC) in Peterborough to share stories of immigration and integration. Other stories in the series include: Tuncay Alkan and his hummus recipe, Imad Mahfouz and his yalanji recipe, and Gayathri Rajan and her biryani recipe.

Aromas, flavours, ingredients, who we cook for and how we share our recipes — they all tell stories that shape us as a community. On this journey through pantries and kitchens, we hope that you will fill both your plate and your heart.

Share your experience trying out these recipes, or your own story and recipe, on social media using the hashtag #CookWithNCC.

To join the New Canadians Centre on their 40-year journey of welcoming immigrants and refugees, visit nccpeterborough.ca.

Good news isn’t found exclusively in no news — sometimes it can be found in actual news.

Peterborough’s medical officer of health Dr. Rosanna Salvaterra had plenty of good news to share Monday (June 7) during her Peterborough Public Health media briefing, both on the new case count and vaccination fronts.

As of Sunday at 4:30 p.m., the number of active cases in Peterborough city and county, Curve Lake, and Hiawatha was reported as 29 — a significant decrease of 18 since last Tuesday. Even more telling was last week’s new case count total of 26, the lowest one-week new case total since the week of February 8 when 21 new cases were detected.

Meanwhile, the number of close contacts of positive cases being monitored has also dropped in a big way and now stands at 80, 67 less than what was reported last Tuesday.

“The light at the end of the tunnel is continuing to brighten,” said Dr. Salvaterra.

“The decline in cases is supported by our most recent wastewater surveillance data that shows persistent but low levels of the virus here. The cases that we are identifying are screening as the B.1.1.7. variant (first identified in the UK), now known as the Alpha variant. So far we have not see any cases due to the Delta variant (B.1.617, first identified in India) locally.”

The good news continues on the outbreak front, with Dr. Salvaterra reporting the outbreak at Fairhaven Long-Term Care Home over, with ongoing outbreaks at Riverview Manor and a workplace setting “stable.”

While delighted with the downward trend in infection numbers, Dr. Salvaterra said she would have liked to have seen the trend sooner than now.

“When you look at when the stay-at-home order was introduced, this has been awhile in coming. It’s taken us a lot longer to get to this point than we wished. Yes, it’s very welcome news to see those numbers finally drop and stay down for more than a few days, but I will be much more confident when I’ve seen 14 days of consistent low numbers.”

Dr. Salvaterra said “the more data we have, the more confident we can be we’re headed in a downward curve. In Peterborough we’ve had well more than a week of single-digit daily increases. That certainly makes me more confident that we may be ready, but I am fearful.”

During the briefing, the Ontario government announced the first step of its reopening plan will now take place on Friday (June 11), three days earlier than scheduled.

“The incubation period for COVID-19 is 14 days,” Dr. Salvaterra pointed out, not yet aware of the province’s reopening announcement. “I would love to see 14 days of steady decline before a reopening. It’s the premier’s call. As long as we’re all clear on what public health measures need to continue, that’s really what’s going to ensure that we have a safe reopening.”

As for vaccination progress, Dr. Salvaterra confirmed at least 69.5 per cent of eligible residents aged 18 and over have received at least a first dose of vaccine — an increase of close to 10 per cent from just a week ago.

“As of the end of the day yesterday, 85,166 local residents had received their first dose. There are also now more than 12,000 residents who are fully vaccinated. As for youth 12 to 17 years old, we’re showing about 24 per cent have now received their first dose.”

“These numbers are terrific, but we estimate that we still have more than 36,000 adults over the age of 18 in the Peterborough area who still need their first dose, and we have about 6,000 adolescents aged 12 to 17 who are still not vaccinated. We have some work to do, but we’re doing really well.”

Dr. Salvaterra added 9,000 appointments are available in June for adults, for their first or second dose, and 2,500 appointments available for youth vaccination clinics scheduled for June 15, 16, and 17. Still, there remains more demand for vaccine than there is supply.

“We’re still receiving just more than 8,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine each week, but may see that decline a bit,” Dr. Salvaterra said. “But we’re seeing our Moderna vaccine allocation increase as more arrives.”

As for those who received a first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine from their primary care provider and prefer to wait for a second dose of that vaccine, as opposed to receiving either Pfizer or Moderna for their second dose, Dr. Salvaterra said they will receive an email this week with a link to book a second dose appointment at the 12-week interval. Primary care providers will be staffing special AstraZeneca clinics at the Evinrude Centre vaccination clinic for that purpose.

“Patients without an email address can phone their primary care provider the week of June 21 to schedule an appointment for their second dose,” said Dr. Salvaterra.

“If you were vaccinated with AstraZeneca but prefer to take a second dose of one of the messenger RNA vaccines (Moderna or Pfizer) instead, you can now book that second dose appointment through the provincial booking system at www.ontario.ca/bookvaccine.”

Also commenting during Monday’s briefing were Peterborough-Kawartha MP Maryam Monsef and Peterborough board of health chair and Selwyn mayor Andy Mitchell.

“The next three weeks are critical,” said Mayor Mitchell. “If you haven’t yet been vaccinated and you are eligible, please get vaccinated, including your second dose when the time comes. And when the reopening begins, be cautious. It’s not a wholesale return to business as usual.”

The Ontario government is proceeding with the first step of its reopening plan three days earlier than planned — on Friday, June 11th instead of Monday, June 14th.

Premier Doug Ford said the decision is based on the province-wide vaccination rate and continuing improvements in key public health and health system indicators.

“The only reason we’re able to do so is because of the enormous sacrifices made by individuals, families, and communities across Ontario,” Ford states in a media release.

The province says 72 per cent of adults 18 years or age and older have now received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, far above the 60 per cent benchmark set by the government for step one to begin.

During the last week of May, the COVID-19 case rate in Ontario decreased by 35.1 per cent. As of Sunday (June 6), the number of patients with COVID-19 in Ontario ICUs is 497 — which includes 31 patients from Manitoba — as compared to 687 two weeks ago.

Step one includes the following changes from existing public health restrictions

• Outdoor social gatherings and organized public events with up to 10 people.
• Non-essential retail permitted at 15 per cent capacity, with no restrictions on the goods that can be sold.
• Essential and other select retail permitted at 25 per cent capacity, with no restrictions on the goods that can be sold.
• Outdoor dining with up to four people per table, with exceptions for larger households.
• Concert venues, theatres and cinemas may open outdoors for the purpose of rehearsing or performing a recorded or broadcasted concert, artistic event, theatrical performance or other performance with no more than 10 performers, among other restrictions.
• Outdoor fitness classes, outdoor groups in personal training and outdoor individual/team sport training to be permitted with up to 10 people, among other restrictions.
• Day camps for children permitted to operate in a manner consistent with the safety guidelines for COVID-19 produced by the Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Health.
• Overnight camping at campgrounds and campsites, including Ontario Parks, and short-term rentals.
• Outdoor horse racing tracks and motor speedways permitted to operate without spectators; and
• Outdoor attractions such as zoos, landmarks, historic sites, botanical gardens with capacity and other restrictions.
• Outdoor religious services, rites, or ceremonies, including wedding services and funeral services, capped at the number of people that can maintain a physical distance of two metres.
• Indoor religious services, rites, or ceremonies, including wedding services and funeral services permitted at up to 15 per cent capacity of the particular room.

The provincial government says Ontario will remain in step one for at least 21 days to evaluate any impacts on key public health and health system indicators.

If at the end of the 21 days the province has vaccinated 70 per cent of adults with one dose and 20 per cent of adults with two doses, and there are continued improvements in other key public health and health system indicators, the province will move to step two.

The federal government is providing an $18.4 million low-cost loan to help construct affordable rental housing near Del Crary Park in downtown Peterborough.

The Sawmill Residence is a six-storey 64-unit residential building under construction at 191-203 Rink Street and 59-63 Olive Avenue in Peterborough.

The funding is being provided through the rental construction financing initiative of the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). Ahmed Hussen, federal minister of families, children and social development and minister responsible for CMHC, announced the funding on Monday (June 7) along with Peterborough-Kawartha MP Maryam Monsef and Peterborough Mayor Diane Therrien.

Developed by Ashburnham Realty and designed by Lett Architects Inc., the 60,000-square-foot building will be located near major amenities including retail, culture, parks, and public transit.

“Breaking ground on this project has been a long time coming for us and our community,” states Ashburnham Realty owner Paul Bennett in a media release. “The location around Little Lake and Del Crary Park is a true picture of all our city has to offer.”

According to Bennett, the building’s name stems from the area’s lumber industry heritage.

“Even to this day, we found sawdust in the ground during the initial site examinations,” Bennett says.

The Sawmill Residence will include a mix of one, two, and three-bedroom suites and will feature universal design, accessibility, and sustainability upgrades. The building will include fiberglass window systems and increased insulation values that will result in lower day-to-day operating costs for the tenants.

“Affordable, accessible housing is a priority for the City of Peterborough,” Mayor Therrien says. “We are grateful to Ashburnham Realty for recognizing the importance of the private sector in providing housing to all. We thank the Government of Canada for continuing to invest in housing in our community. Housing is a human right and we will continue working to ensure that everyone has a safe place to live.”

The Sawmill Residence will include common spaces for the residents and will feature a large exterior mural by artist and Peterborough native Alex Bierk.

Construction on the project has begun, with occupancy expected in early 2022.

Here’s an update on COVID-19 cases in Ontario as well as in the greater Kawarthas region.

Ontario is reporting 663 new cases today, the seventh straight day of increases under 1,000. For the eighth day in a row, only Toronto and Peel are reporting triple-digit increases, and half of Ontario’s 34 health units are reporting 5 or fewer cases. The seven-day average of daily cases has decreased to 791, and the proportion of active cases has declined for the 48th straight day.

There has been a double-digit decrease in hospitalizations, although this number excludes more than 10% of hospitals so actual hospitalizations may be higher. There’s been a small decrease of ICU patients and a larger decrease in ventilated patients. Ontario is reporting 10 new deaths, with no new deaths in long-term care homes.

With almost 10 million vaccine doses administered, around 68% of Ontario’s total population has received at least a single dose. There has also been a record increase of second doses administered for the fifth day in a row, with over 1 million people (7% of the total population) now fully vaccinated.

In the greater Kawarthas region, there are 2 new cases to report (in Peterborough) and an additional 8 cases resolved. Numbers for Kawartha Lakes, Northumberland, and Haliburton are not available as the health unit does not issue updates on Sundays. Active cases have decreased by 5 to 96, with Hastings Prince Edward now having no active cases. See below for details from each individual health unit in the region.

Most of the new cases reported today are in Toronto (115) and Peel (112).

There are double-digit increases reported today in Niagara (59), York (47), Ottawa (40), Waterloo (34), Durham (33), Hamilton (33), Porcupine (32), Halton (31), Simcoe Muskoka (27), Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge (18), Windsor-Essex (16), Middlesex-London (14), and Brant (12), with smaller increases in Thunder Bay (8) and Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph (6).

The remaining 17 health units are reporting 5 or fewer new cases, with 7 health units reporting no new cases at all.

Of today’s new cases, 62% are among people 39 and younger, with the highest number of cases (229) among people ages 20-39, followed by 185 cases among people 19 and under and 168 cases among people ages 40-59.

With 1,222 more cases resolved since yesterday, the percentage of resolved cases has increased by 0.1% to at 96.8% — the 48th straight day the percentage of resolved cases has increased. The average positivity rate across Ontario has decreased by 0.3% to 2.8%, meaning that 28 out of every 1,000 tests performed were positive for COVID-19 on June 5.

Ontario is reporting 10 new COVID-19 deaths today, with no new deaths in long-term care homes. The seven-day average of daily deaths has decreased by 1 to 16.

Hospitalizations have decreased by 80 from yesterday to 545, although more than 10% of hospitals did not submit data to the daily bed census so the actual number of hospitalizations may be higher. The number of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs has decreased by 6 to 510 and the number of patients with COVID-19 on ventilators has decreased by 18 to 344.

A total of 22,635 tests were completed yesterday, with the backlog of tests under investigation decreasing by 5,271 to 7,049.

A total of 9,992,575 doses of vaccine have now been administered, an increase of 158,393 from yesterday, and 1,031,520 people have been fully vaccinated with both doses of vaccine, a record increase of 68,263 from yesterday.

The number of fully vaccinated people represents 7% of Ontario’s population, an increase of 0.46% from yesterday, with fully and partially vaccinated people representing 67.82% of the total population, an increase of 1.08% from yesterday. An estimated 70-90% of the population must be immunized to achieve herd immunity.

In the greater Kawarthas region, there are 2 new cases to report in Peterborough. Hastings Prince Edward, which saw active cases in the triple digits in April, has reported no new cases since May 31 and has resolved its last two active cases.

Numbers for Kawartha Lakes, Northumberland, and Haliburton are not available as the health unit does not issue updates on Sundays. Numbers for June 6 will be included in the June 7 update.

There are 6 new regional cases of variants of concern in Peterborough.

There has been 1 new COVID-related hospitalization in Peterborough.

An additional 8 cases have been resolved, including 6 in Peterborough and 2 in Hastings Prince Edward.

There are currently 96 active cases in the greater Kawarthas region, a decrease of 5 since yesterday, including 56 in Kawartha Lakes, 29 in Peterborough, 10 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton. There are no active cases in Hastings Prince Edward.

Since the pandemic began in the greater Kawarthas region, there have been 1,525 confirmed positive cases in the Peterborough area (1,476 resolved with 21 deaths), 1,049 in the City of Kawartha Lakes (949 resolved with 57 deaths), 926 in Northumberland County (899 resolved with 17 deaths), 119 in Haliburton County (117 resolved with 1 death), and 1,121 in Hastings and Prince Edward counties (1,110 resolved with 11 deaths). The most recent death was reported in Kawartha Lakes on June 5.

The provincial data in this report is pulled from Ontario’s integrated Public Health Information System (iPHIS) at 4 p.m. the previous day, as well as from systems in Toronto, Ottawa, and Middlesex-London at 2 p.m. the previous day. Data from local health units is more current and is usually reflected in the provincial data the following day. There may be discrepancies between the Ontario data reported today (which is from yesterday) and the local health unit data reported today (which is from today).

Peterborough Public Health

Peterborough Public Health’s service area is the City and County of Peterborough and the Hiawatha and Curve Lake First Nations.

The health unit provides daily reports, including on weekends, excluding statutory holidays.

Confirmed positive: 1,525 (increase of 3)*
Total variants of concern cases: 703 (increase of 6)
Active cases: 29 (decrease of 3)
Close contacts: 80 (decrease of 12)
Deaths: 21 (no change)
Resolved: 1,475 (increase of 6)
Hospitalizations (total to date): 70 (increase of 1)**
ICU admissions (total to date): 15 (no change)
Total tests completed: Over 52,950 (increase of 50)
Total vaccine doses administered (residents and non-residents): 90,716 (increase of 11,566 as of June 3)
Number of residents who have received first dose: 81,390 (increase of 9,270 as of June 3)
Number of residents fully vaccinated: 9,388 (increase of 2,729 as of June 3)
Outbreaks: Fairhaven long-term care home in Peterborough, Unidentified workplace #11 in Peterborough, Riverview Manor long-term care home in Peterborough (no change)

*The health unit is reporting 2 new cases in the last 24 hours. The total case count has increased by 3 because 1 case has been added to a previous day.

**As of June 4, Peterborough Regional Health Centre is reporting 3 patients currently hospitalized with COVID-19 (decrease of 1) and a total of 76 patients transferred from other areas as a result of a provincial directive (no change).

Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit

The Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit’s service area is the City of Kawartha Lakes, Northumberland County, and Haliburton County.

The health unit provides reports from Monday to Saturday, excluding Sundays and statutory holidays. These numbers are from June 5; numbers for June 6 will be included in the June 7 report.

Confirmed positive: 2,094, including 1,049 in Kawartha Lakes, 926 in Northumberland, and 119 in Haliburton (increase of 8, including 6 in Kawartha Lakes and 2 in Northumberland)*
Total variants of concern cases: 750, including 389 in Kawartha Lakes, 327 in Northumberland, and 34 in Haliburton (increase of 16, including 14 in Kawartha Lakes, 1 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton)
Active cases: 67, including 56 in Kawartha Lakes, 10 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton (net decrease of 11, including a decrease of 12 in Kawartha Lakes and an increase of 1 in Northumberland)
Probable cases: 1, in Kawartha Lakes (decrease of 1 in Kawartha Lakes)
Hospitalizations (total to date): 76, including 42 in Kawartha Lakes, 31 in Northumberland, and 3 in Haliburton (no change)**
Deaths (including among probable cases): 75, including 57 in Kawartha Lakes, 17 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton (increase of 1 in Kawartha Lakes)
Resolved: 1,965, including 949 in Kawartha Lakes, 899 in Northumberland, and 117 in Haliburton (increase of 34, including 32 in Kawartha Lakes and 2 in Northumberland)
Tests completed: 196,484 (increase of 972)
Vaccine doses administered to residents: 104,784 (increase of 8,863 as of May 31)
Number of residents fully vaccinated: 11,108 (increase of 3,773 as of May 31)
Outbreaks: Central East Correctional Centre in Lindsay, LCBO Port Hope (no net change)***

*The health unit states that total counts and counts for individual counties may fluctuate from previously reported counts as cases are transferred to or from the health unit based on case investigation details and routine data cleaning.

**As of June 4, Ross Memorial Hospital in Lindsay reports no patients hospitalized with COVID-19 (no change).

***An outbreak at Medi-Share Inc. in Lindsay has been declared resolved. An outbreak at LCBO Port Hope was declared on June 4.

Hastings Prince Edward Public Health

Hastings Prince Edward Public Health’s service area is Hastings County (including Bancroft) and Prince Edward County.

The health unit provides daily reports, including on weekends, excluding statutory holidays.

Confirmed positive: 1,121 (no change)
Confirmed variants of concern cases: 490 (no change)
Active cases: 0 (decrease of 2)
Deaths: 11 (no change)
Currently hospitalized: 4 (decrease of 1)
Currently hospitalized and in ICU: 2 (no change)
Currently hospitalized and in ICU on ventilator: 1 (no change)
Resolved: 1,110 (increase of 2)
Tests completed: 147,692 (increase of 2,202)
Vaccine doses administered: 109,319 (increase of 1,997)
Number of people fully vaccinated: 11,633 (increase of 922)
Outbreaks: None (no change)

Province of Ontario

Confirmed positive: 536,082 (increase of 663)
COVID-19 variants of concern (VOC) cases: 131,991 of B.1.1.7 Alpha variant (increase of 868); 1,076 of B.1.351 Beta variant (increase of 41); 3,740 of P.1 Gamma variant (increase of 477)
VOC R(t): 0.75 (increase of 0.03 as of June 3)*
7-day average of daily new cases: 791 (decrease of 53)
Positivity rate: 2.8% (decrease of 0.3%)
Resolved: 518,860 (increase of 1,222), 96.8% of all cases (increase of 0.1%)
Hospitalizations: 545 (decrease of 80)**
Hospitalizations in ICU: 510 (decrease of 6)
Hospitalizations in ICU on ventilator: 344 (decrease of 18)
Deaths: 8,854 (increase of 10)
7-day average of daily new deaths: 16 (decrease of 1)
Deaths of residents in long-term care homes: 3,956 (no change)
Total tests completed: 15,391,672 (increase of 22,635)
Tests under investigation: 7,049 (decrease of 5,271)
Vaccination doses administered: 9,992,575 (increase of 158,393), 67.82% of Ontario’s total population (increase of 1.08%)***
People fully vaccinated (two doses): 1,031,520 (increase of 68,263), 7.00% of Ontario’s total population (increase of 0.46%)***

*R(t) is a virus’s effective reproduction number, which is the average number of new infections caused by a single infected individual at a specific time (t) in a partially immunized population. To successfully eliminate a disease from a population, R(t) needs to be less than 1.

**More than 10% of hospitals did not submit data to the daily bed census so the actual number of hospitalizations may be higher.

***An estimated 70-90% of the population must be immunized to achieve herd immunity.

For more information about COVID-19 in Ontario, visit covid-19.ontario.ca.

Another person has drowned in a lake in the northern Kawarthas.

On Saturday evening (June 5), Bancroft OPP responded to reports that a 22-year-old Scarborough woman had gone missing in the water of Papineau Lake, located around 30 kilometres north of Bancroft in Hastings Highlands.

Witnesses told police the woman had fallen off a floating device while in the water around 8 p.m. on Saturday and did not make it back to shore.

On Saturday evening, police conducted an unsuccessful search of the area with the assistance of the OPP Emergency Response Team.

Police continued the search on Sunday (June 6) with the assistance of the Underwater Search and Recovery Unit, who recovered the woman’s body just before 2 p.m.

The Office of the Chief Coroner is directing the ongoing investigation, with a post-mortem examination scheduled. Police say foul play is not suspected in the woman’s death.

This is the fifth apparently accidental death in the past three weeks in the northern Kawarthas region.

On May 12, Haliburton Highlands OPP found a 63-year-old woman without vital signs in Loon Lake southeast of Haliburton. On May 20, Bancroft OPP recovered the body of a 68-year-old Ajax man from Mink Lake north of Bancroft. On June 1, Bancroft OPP recovered the body of a 60-year-old Combermere man from Bells Rapids Lake north of Bancroft. On June 3, police recovered the body of a 60-year-old man from Dark Lake in Wilberforce east of Haliburton.

This story has been updated with the news that police recovered the missing woman’s body.

Environment Canada has issued a special air quality statement for the southern Kawarthas region, including Peterborough and southern Peterborough County, Lindsay and the southern Kawartha Lakes, and Northumberland County.

High levels of air pollution are expected Sunday (June 6), leading to the possibility of deteriorating air quality. Hot and sunny conditions are expected to cause increasing ground-level ozone concentrations in the area.

Moderate risk Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) values are expected throughout the day, with the potential of short-term high risk AQHI values in the afternoon. Similar conditions may persist into Monday.

Individuals may experience symptoms such as increased coughing, throat irritation, headaches or shortness of breath. Children, seniors, and those with cardiovascular or lung disease, such as asthma, are especially at risk.

People with lung diseases, such as asthma and COPD, can be particularly sensitive to air pollution. They will generally experience more serious health effects at lower levels. Pollution can aggravate their diseases, leading to increased medication use, doctor and emergency room visits, and hospital visits.

If you are experiencing symptoms, such as coughing or throat irritation, consider reducing or rescheduling strenuous outdoor activities until the special air quality statement is lifted. Exposure to air pollution is particularly a health concern for people with heart or breathing problems, those with diabetes, children and the elderly.