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Ontario reports record high 4,456 COVID-19 cases, including 24 in greater Kawarthas region

By kawarthaNOW -

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

Today, Ontario is reporting 4,456 new cases today — the highest daily number of new cases since the pandemic began — with 10 public health units in Ontario reporting at least triple-digit cases for the second day in a row.

The seven-day average of daily cases has increased by 202 to 3,573. There are now 14,387 cases of the B.1.1.7 UK variant in Ontario, an increase of 1,174 from yesterday, with 2 more cases of the B.1.351 South Africa variant.

The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 and in ICUs has reached a record high of 605.

Ontario is reporting 21 new deaths, the highest single-day increase since March 4, with none of the deaths in long-term care homes. Of the 21 deaths, 11 were among people 80 and over, 7 among people ages 60-79, 2 among people ages 40-59, and 1 is a person ages 20-39.

In the greater Kawarthas region, there are 24 new cases to report and an additional 20 cases resolved, with the number of active cases increasing by 2 to 385. Reports for Kawartha Lakes, Northumberland, and Haliburton are not available on Sundays. See below for detailed numbers from each regional health unit.

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Most of today’s new cases are in Toronto (with a record increase of 1,353), Peel (860), York (444), Ottawa (377), Durham (329), Middlesex-London (159), Niagara (120), Halton (118), Hamilton (116), and Simcoe Muskoka (101).

There are double-digit increases today in Waterloo (63), Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph (61), Eastern Ontario (53), Brant (35), Windsor-Essex (34), Lambton (24), Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington (23), Sudbury (22), Leeds, Grenville & Lanark (22), Haldimand-Norfolk (19), Southwestern (18), Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge (17), Peterborough (16), Northwestern (13), Grey Bruce (12), and Hastings Prince Edward (11), with smaller increases in Algoma (9), Huron Perth (9), Thunder Bay (7), and Chatham-Kent (6).

The remaining 4 health units are reporting 5 or fewer new cases, with 2 health units (North Bay Parry Sound and Timiskaming) reporting no new cases.

Of today’s new cases, 56% are among people 39 and younger, with the highest number of cases (1,711) among people ages 20-39 followed by 1,281 cases among people ages 40-59 and 782 cases among people 19 and under.

With 2,617 more cases resolved since yesterday, the percentage of resolved cases has decreased by 0.3% to 89.6%. The average positivity rate across Ontario has increased by 1.2% to 7.7%, meaning that 77 out of every 1,000 tests performed were positive for COVID-19 on April 10.

Ontario is reporting 21 new COVID-19 deaths today, with no new deaths in long-term care homes. Of the 21 deaths, 11 were among people 80 and over, 7 among people ages 60-79, 2 among people ages 40-59, and 1 is a person ages 20-39. Ontario has averaged 16 new daily deaths over the past week, an increase of 1 from yesterday.

The number of hospitalizations decreased by 11 yesterday to 1,513, but this number does not include data from more than 10% of hospitals, so the actual number of hospitalized people may be higher. The number of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs has increased by 20 to a record high 605, and the number of patients with COVID-19 on ventilators has decreased by 2 to 382.

A total of 56,378 tests were completed yesterday, with the backlog of tests under investigation decreasing by 11,127 to 31,836.

A total of 3,139,743 doses of vaccine have now been administered, an increase of 94,794 from yesterday, with 333,150 people fully vaccinated with both doses of vaccine, an increase of 2,168.

The number of fully vaccinated people represents 2.26% of Ontario’s population, an increase of 0.01% from yesterday, with fully and partially vaccinated people representing 21.31% of the population, an increase of 0.64% from yesterday. An estimated 70-90% of the population must be immunized to achieve herd immunity.

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In the greater Kawarthas region, there are 24 new cases to report, including 15 in Hastings Prince Edward and 9 in Peterborough. Updated numbers for Kawartha Lakes, Northumberland, and Haliburton are not available as the Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit does not issue a report on Sundays.

An outbreak at an unidentified congregate living facility in Peterborough was declared on April 11.

There are 27 new regional cases of variants of concern, including 21 in Hastings Prince Edward and 6 in Peterborough.

An additional 20 cases have been resolved, including 11 in Hastings Prince Edward and 9 in Peterborough.

There are currently 385 active cases in the greater Kawarthas region, an increase of 2 from yesterday, including 156 in Hastings Prince Edward (44 in Quinte West, 72 in Belleville, 6 in Tyendinaga & Deseronto, 3 in Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory, 13 in Prince Edward County, 17 in Central Hastings, and 1 in North Hastings), 104 in Peterborough, 93 in Northumberland, 25 in Kawartha Lakes, and 7 in Haliburton.

Since the pandemic began in the greater Kawarthas region, there have been 1,002 confirmed positive cases in the Peterborough area (886 resolved with 12 deaths), 622 in the City of Kawartha Lakes (555 resolved with 55 deaths), 611 in Northumberland County (506 resolved with 12 deaths), 77 in Haliburton County (69 resolved with 1 death), and 711 in Hastings and Prince Edward counties (548 resolved with 7 deaths). The most recent death was reported in Hastings Prince Edward on April 10.

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).

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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: 1,002 (increase of 9)
Total variants of concern cases: 287 (increase of 6)
Active cases: 104 (no change)
Close contacts: 341 (increase of 39)
Deaths: 12 (no change)
Resolved: 886 (increase of 9)
Hospitalizations (total to date): 32 (no change)*
Total tests completed: Over 47,600 (no change)
Outbreaks: Empress Gardens retirement home in Peterborough, Unidentified workplace #2 in Peterborough, Unidentified workplace #3 in Peterborough, Champlain Annex at Trent University in Peterborough, Thomas A. Stewart Secondary School in Peterborough, Unidentified workplace #4 in Peterborough County, Unidentified congregate living facility #3 in Peterborough (increase of 1)**
Vaccine doses administered: 34,612 (increase of 4,179 as of April 8)

*As of April 9, Peterborough Regional Health Centre is reporting fewer than 10 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 (decrease of 2) and 33 patients transferred from other areas as a result of a provincial directive (no change).

**An outbreak at an unidentified congregate living facility in Peterborough was declared on April 11.

 

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 April 10.

Confirmed positive: 1,310, including 622 in Kawartha Lakes, 611 in Northumberland, and 77 in Haliburton (increase of 21, including 6 in Kawartha Lakes and 15 in Northumberland)*
Cases with N501Y mutation: 121, including 42 in Kawartha Lakes, 77 in Northumberland, and 2 in Haliburton (increase of 3, including 1 in Kawartha Lakes, 1 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton)**
Active cases: 124, including 25 in Kawartha Lakes, 93 in Northumberland, and 7 in Haliburton (increase of 14, including 2 in Kawartha Lakes, 11 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton)
Probable cases: 2 in Northumberland (no change)
High-risk contacts: 410, including 53 in Kawartha Lakes, 254 in Northumberland, and 14 in Haliburton (net increase of 26)***
Hospitalizations (total to date): 53, including 32 in Kawartha Lakes, 18 in Northumberland, and 3 in Haliburton (no change)****
Deaths (including among probable cases): 68, including 55 in Kawartha Lakes, 12 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton (no change)
Resolved: 1,130, including 555 in Kawartha Lakes, 506 in Northumberland, 69 in Haliburton (increase of 10, including 5 in Kawartha Lakes and 5 in Northumberland)
Tests completed: 167,405 (increase of 3)
Vaccine doses administered: 30,408 (last updated April 6)
Number of people fully vaccinated: 2,989 (last updated April 6)
Outbreaks: St. Mary Catholic Secondary School in Cobourg, Timber House Resort in Brighton, Swiss Chalet in Cobourg, Christian Horizons in Port Hope, Cobourg Collegiate Institute in Cobourg (increase of 1)*****

*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.

**The N501Y mutation has been identified in variants of concern including the B.1.1.7 UK variant, the B.1.351 South Africa variant, and the P.1 Brazilian variant.

***This total includes an additional 89 high-risk contacts directly followed up through the Public Health Ontario contact tracing process that are missing the contacts’ county.

****As of April 9, Ross Memorial Hospital in Lindsay reports 5 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 (increase of 2).

*****An outbreak at Cobourg Collegiate Institute in Cobourg was declared on April 9.

 

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: 711 (increase of 15)
Confirmed variants of concern cases: 141 (increase of 21)
Active cases: 156 (increase of 2)
Deaths: 7 (no change)
Currently hospitalized: 7 (decrease of 1)
Currently hospitalized and in ICU: 2 (decrease of 1)
Currently hospitalized and in ICU on ventilator (total to date): 1 (decrease of 1)
Resolved: 548 (increase of 11)
Tests completed: 120,227 (increase of 4,931)
Vaccine doses administered: 41,469 (increase of 722)
Number of people fully vaccinated: 3,214 (increase of 3)
Outbreaks: Unidentified workplace in Trenton, Unidentified setting in Belleville, Unidentified child care facility in Belleville, Unidentified workplace in Quinte West, Tri-board Bus #499 (no change)

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Province of Ontario

Confirmed positive: 386,608 (increase of 4,456)
COVID-19 variants of concern (VOC) cases: 14,387 of B.1.1.7 UK variant (increase of 1,174); 78 of B.1.351 South Africa variant (increase of 2); 134 of P.1 Brazilian variant (no change)*
VOC R(t): 1.23 (decrease of 0.01, last updated April 2)**
7-day average of daily new cases: 3,573 (increase of 202)
Positivity rate: 7.7% (increase of 1.2%)
Resolved: 346,239 (increase of 2,617), 89.6% of all cases (decrease of 0.3%)
Hospitalizations: 1,513 (decrease of 11)***
Hospitalizations in ICU: 605 (increase of 20)
Hospitalizations in ICU on ventilator: 382 (decrease of 2)
Deaths: 7,552 (increase of 21)
7-day average of daily new deaths: 16 (increase of 1)
Deaths of residents in long-term care homes: 3,907 (no change)
Total tests completed: 13,148,359 (increase of 56,378)
Tests under investigation: 31,836 (decrease of 11,127)
Vaccination doses administered: 3,139,743 (increase of 94,794), 21.31% of Ontario’s population (increase of 0.64%)****
People fully vaccinated (two doses): 333,150 (increase of 2,168), 2.26% of Ontario’s population (increase of 0.01%)****

*On April 8, the government changed the way it reports cases of the B.1.1.7 UK variant. Previously they were reported only when genetic sequencing confirmed they were of the B.1.1.7 lineage. Since genetic sequencing completed to date has determined 95% of specimens screening positive for the N501Y mutation have been found to be the B.1.1.7 UK variant, specimens with the N501Y mutation are now reported as cases of the B.1.1.7 UK variant.

**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 for this report, so the actual number of hospitalizations may be higher than reported.

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

COVID-19 cases in Ontario from March 11 - April 10, 2021. The red line is the number of new cases reported daily, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of new cases. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 cases in Ontario from March 11 – April 10, 2021. The red line is the number of new cases reported daily, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of new cases. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 tests completed in Ontario from March 11 - April 10, 2021. The red line is the daily number of tests completed, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of tests completed. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 tests completed in Ontario from March 11 – April 10, 2021. The red line is the daily number of tests completed, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of tests completed. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 hospitalizations and ICU admissions in Ontario from March 11 - April 10, 2021. The red line is the daily number of COVID-19 hospitalizations, the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of hospitalizations, the purple line is the daily number of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs, and the dotted orange line is a five-day moving average of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 hospitalizations and ICU admissions in Ontario from March 11 – April 10, 2021. The red line is the daily number of COVID-19 hospitalizations, the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of hospitalizations, the purple line is the daily number of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs, and the dotted orange line is a five-day moving average of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 deaths in Ontario from March 11 - April 10, 2021. The red line is the cumulative number of daily deaths, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of daily deaths. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 deaths in Ontario from March 11 – April 10, 2021. The red line is the cumulative number of daily deaths, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of daily deaths. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in Ontario from March 11 - April 10, 2021. The red line is the cumulative number of daily doses administered, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of daily doses. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in Ontario from March 11 – April 10, 2021. The red line is the cumulative number of daily doses administered, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of daily doses. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)

 

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

Significant rainfall for southern Kawarthas region Sunday evening into Monday morning

By kawarthaNOW -

Environment Canada has issued a special weather statement for the southern Kawarthas region for significant rainfall overnight on Sunday (April 11).

A band of rain has become established over the area.

On and off rain can be expected to continue Sunday evening into tonight before easing to scattered showers on Monday.

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Rainfall amounts in the 25 to 50 mm range are likely by Monday morning.

The special weather statement is in effect for southern Kawartha Lakes including Lindsay, southern Peterborough County including the City of Peterborough and Lakefield, and western Northumberland County including Cobourg and Colborne.

Your gift to the PRHC Foundation will support the backbone of patient care

By kawarthaNOW -
Peterborough Regional Health Centre radiologist Dr. Mario Voros calls CT scanners "the backbone" of diagnostic imaging. PRHC's current CT scanner technology (pictured with Dr. Voros) is nearing the end of its lifespan and, with help from donors, it will be replaced with new, state-of-the-art equipment to support world-class patient care. (Photo courtesy of PRHC Foundation)

With all the efforts by healthcare professionals at Peterborough Regional Health Centre (PRHC) to care for COVID-19 patients over the past year, we can sometimes forget about the other people whose lives they save every day.

And whether the patient is an accident victim with a head injury, a person who has suffered a stroke, or someone with a serious respiratory infection, there’s one piece of equipment that doctors consider the backbone of patient care — the CT scanner.

At PRHC’s Emergency Department alone, doctors order an average of 35 CT scans every single day — almost half of the 28,000 scans performed at the hospital every year. For many seriously sick or injured patients, when there isn’t a moment to lose, a CT scan means doctors can quickly confirm a diagnosis and begin lifesaving treatment.

“CT stands for computed tomography,” says PRHC radiologist Dr. Mario Voros, explaining a CT scan involves a series of X-ray images taken from different angles around a patient’s body. Computer processing then combines these images into a cross-sectional view of the patient’s bones, blood vessels, and soft tissues.

“It’s a more powerful, dynamic, moving, three-dimensional type of X-ray,” Dr. Voros adds. “Some of the issues doctors can use CT scans to examine include brain bleeds, blockages in arteries, chest blood clots, appendicitis, kidney stones, and fractures, among many conditions. They are also used in cancer care and for stroke assessment.”

Skilled radiologists like Dr. Voros use CT scans to confirm a diagnosis. In a medical emergency, they can see the scanned images within minutes — minutes that can sometimes mean the difference between life and death for a patient.

In this photo taken prior to the pandemic and universal masking protocols, a medical radiation technologist and volunteer demonstrate the current CT scanner technology at Peterborough Regional Health Centre. CT scan technology has greatly improved in the past decade. New CT scanners are faster (meaning shorter scan times), provide higher quality images, and use less radiation -- meaning less risk to the thousands of patients who will be scanned every year at Peterborough Regional Health Centre. (Photo: Michael Hurcomb)
In this photo taken prior to the pandemic and universal masking protocols, a medical radiation technologist and volunteer demonstrate the current CT scanner technology at Peterborough Regional Health Centre. CT scan technology has greatly improved in the past decade. New CT scanners are faster (meaning shorter scan times), provide higher quality images, and use less radiation — meaning less risk to the thousands of patients who will be scanned every year at Peterborough Regional Health Centre. (Photo: Michael Hurcomb)

But the existing CT scanners at PRHC are now more than 12 years old and must soon be replaced. The PRHC Foundation is reaching out to community donors to help the hospital purchase two new cutting-edge CT scanners.

Dr. Voros points out the technology behind CT scanners has vastly improved over the past decade, so replacing PRHC’s existing scanners is an “exciting opportunity” to support world-class patient care at Peterborough’s regional hospital.

“The new CT technology is faster, making it possible to scan a patient’s entire body in a matter of seconds,” he explains. “It also provides higher quality imaging, giving doctors clearer and more reliable pictures of what’s happening inside a patient’s body.”

Dr. Voros uses the example of elderly patients who have decreased bone density. He says it can be difficult for doctors to discern a subtle fracture using the existing CT scanners. However, the new CT scanners will provide PRHC’s radiologists with higher-resolution images that highlight potential areas of concern.

He points out another significant benefit of the new CT technology: it emits less radiation, which means less risk for a patient.

“This is particularly beneficial for patients with cancer or chronic illnesses who have repeat CT scans,” Dr. Voros says.

He explains a CT scan of a patient’s chest using the new technology requires the same amount of radiation as a routine chest X-ray — but delivers a much higher quality and more informative image for diagnosing the patient’s condition.

In this photo taken prior to the pandemic and universal masking protocols, a medical radiation technologist and volunteer demonstrate the current CT scanner technology at Peterborough Regional Health Centre. CT scans help doctors diagnose or rule out issues such as brain bleeds, blockages in arteries, bone fractures, appendicitis, kidney stones, and pneumonia, among many others. (Photo: Michael Hurcomb)
In this photo taken prior to the pandemic and universal masking protocols, a medical radiation technologist and volunteer demonstrate the current CT scanner technology at Peterborough Regional Health Centre. CT scans help doctors diagnose or rule out issues such as brain bleeds, blockages in arteries, bone fractures, appendicitis, kidney stones, and pneumonia, among many others. (Photo: Michael Hurcomb)

“Many people don’t realize the government doesn’t fund hospital equipment or technology,” says Lesley Heighway, President and CEO of the PRHC Foundation. “That’s why the most generous communities have the best hospitals.”

Your gift to the PRHC Foundation will make it possible for the hospital to invest in two state-of-the-art CT scanners, considered the best on the market.

There aren’t many hospitals outside of a handful of Canada’s largest city centres that have this technology right now. That means acquiring the new scanners will improve diagnostic imaging for the thousands of patients from across our region who will be scanned as part of their care at Peterborough Regional Health Centre.

“These new CT scanners are critical to supporting world-class patient care in our growing and changing region, both now and well into the future,” Dr. Voros says.

You can help fund lifesaving equipment at PRHC by donating to the PRHC Foundation online at prhcfoundation.ca or by calling 705-876-5000.

Along with a donation, you can also include a message of thanks for PRHC’s frontline healthcare professionals like Dr. Voros, who are always here for us when it matters most. The Foundation will pass those messages along to the doctors, nurses and staff who’ve been honoured, letting them know we’re here for them too.

 

This story was created in partnership with the Peterborough Regional Health Centre Foundation.

Customers who dined at Cobourg Swiss Chalet between March 25 and April 5 asked to self-monitor for COVID-19 symptoms

By kawarthaNOW -
The Swiss Chalet restaurant at 70 Strathy Road in Cobourg. (Photo: Google Maps)

The local health unit is asking anyone who dined at the Swiss Chalet restaurant at 70 Strathy Road in Cobourg between Thursday, March 25th and Monday, April 5th to self-monitor for COVID-19 symptoms.

The Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit declared an outbreak at the restaurant last Wednesday (April 7), with six cases associated with the outbreak so far.

The health unit’s notice only applies to people who dined inside the restaurant, not to those who picked up takeout orders. Although the health unit’s notice extends to April 5th, the province-wide shutdown that went into effect on Saturday, April 3rd prohibited indoor dining as of that date.

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“While there are currently no cases among guests, we are erring on the side of caution and asking people who may have dined in the restaurant to monitor themselves for symptoms,” says medical officer of health Dr. Natalie Bocking in a media release issued Saturday (April 10).

The restaurant owner has been working closely with the health unit to identify potential high-risk contacts, including supplying the health unit with the required customer list for contact tracing. However, the health unit doesn’t have the resources to personally contact all the customers on the list, according to Dr. Bocking, so it is issuing a notice instead.

“This is just one outbreak the health unit is working on currently, and so our capacity to reach out to a high number of potential contacts is limited,” Dr. Bocking says. “We need people to continue to do what they can to prevent any further spread.”

Dr. Bocking adds that, since the risk of transmission is considered low, it’s not necessary for patrons who dined inside the restaurant between March 25 and April 2 to self-isolate, only to monitor their health over the next 14 days for COVID-19 symptoms.

Common symptoms include fever (temperature of 37.8°C or higher), new or worsening cough, headache, and shortness of breath. Other symptoms can include sore throat, difficulty swallowing, changes to sense of taste/smell, nausea/vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, runny nose, and nasal congestion.

The Swiss Chalet restaurant on Strathy Road in Cobourg has voluntarily closed until Tuesday, April 20th.

Ontario reports 3,813 COVID-19 cases, including 48 in greater Kawarthas region

By kawarthaNOW -

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

Ontario is reporting 3,813 new cases today, with 10 public health units in Ontario now reporting triple-digit cases. The seven-day average of daily cases has increased by 115 to 3,371. There are now 13,213 cases of the B.1.1.7 UK variant in Ontario, an increase of 1,721 from yesterday, with 1 more case of the P.1 Brazilian variant.

The number of people hospitalized, in ICUs, and on ventilators because of COVID-19 continues to increase. More than 3 million doses of vaccine have been administered, with more than 20% of Ontario’s population having received at least one dose. A minimum of 70% of the population must be inoculated to achieve herd immunity.

In the greater Kawarthas region, there are 48 new cases to report and an additional 49 cases resolved, with the number of active cases increasing by 2 to 383. There has been 1 new COVID-related death in Hastings Prince Edward. See below for detailed numbers from each regional health unit.

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Most of today’s new cases are in Toronto (973), Peel (669), York (442), Ottawa (289), Durham (281), Hamilton (146), Middlesex-London (141), Niagara (120), Simcoe Muskoka (113), and Halton (112).

There are double-digit increases today in Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph (98), Waterloo (76), Windsor-Essex (37), Sudbury (30), Haldimand-Norfolk (28), Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge (27), Brant (27), Eastern Ontario (23), Thunder Bay (20), Lambton (19), Hastings Prince Edward (18), Southwestern (18), Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington (17), Peterborough (17), Northwestern (12), Porcupine (12), and Leeds, Grenville & Lanark (12), with smaller increases in Renfrew (9), Grey Bruce (7), Chatham-Kent (6), and Huron Perth (6).

For the second day in a row, only 3 health units are reporting 5 or fewer new cases, with only 1 health unit (Timiskaming) reporting no new cases.

Of today’s new cases, 57% are among people 39 and younger, with the highest number of cases (1,444) among people ages 20-39 followed by 1,080 cases among people ages 40-59 and 726 cases among people 19 and under.

With 2,422 more cases resolved since yesterday, the percentage of resolved cases has decreased by 0.3% to 89.9%. The average positivity rate across Ontario has increased by 0.2% to 6.5%, meaning that 65 out of every 1,000 tests performed were positive for COVID-19 on April 9.

Ontario is reporting 19 new COVID-19 deaths today, including 2 new deaths in long-term care homes. Ontario has averaged 15 new daily deaths over the past week, an increase of 1 from yesterday.

The number of hospitalizations increased by 32 yesterday to 1,524, with the number of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs increasing by 33 to 585 and the number of patients with COVID-19 on ventilators increasing by 25 to 384.

A total of 61,439 tests were completed yesterday, with the backlog of tests under investigation increasing by 391 to 42,963.

A total of 3,044,949 doses of vaccine have now been administered, an increase of 104,783 from yesterday, with 330,982 people fully vaccinated with both doses of vaccine, an increase of 2,384.

The number of fully vaccinated people represents 2.25% of Ontario’s population, an increase of 0.02% from yesterday, with fully and partially vaccinated people representing 20.67% of the population, an increase of 0.71% from yesterday. An estimated 70-90% of the population must be immunized to achieve herd immunity.

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In the greater Kawarthas region, there are 48 new cases to report, including 17 in Peterborough, 15 in Northumberland, 10 in Hastings Prince Edward, and 6 in Kawartha Lakes. There are no new cases in Haliburton.

There has been 1 new COVID-related death in Hastings Prince Edward. An outbreak at Cobourg Collegiate Institute in Cobourg was declared on April 9.

There are 22 new regional cases of variants of concern, including 12 in Hastings Prince Edward, 7 in Peterborough, 1 in Kawartha Lakes, 1 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton.

An additional 49 cases have been resolved, including 24 in Hastings Prince Edward, 15 in Peterborough, 5 in Kawartha Lakes, and 5 in Northumberland.

There are currently 383 active cases in the greater Kawarthas region, an increase of 2 from yesterday, including 154 in Hastings Prince Edward (44 in Quinte West, 64 in Belleville, 8 in Tyendinaga & Deseronto, 3 in Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory, 14 in Prince Edward County, 19 in Central Hastings, and 1 in North Hastings), 104 in Peterborough, 93 in Northumberland, 25 in Kawartha Lakes, and 7 in Haliburton.

Since the pandemic began in the greater Kawarthas region, there have been 993 confirmed positive cases in the Peterborough area (877 resolved with 12 deaths), 622 in the City of Kawartha Lakes (555 resolved with 55 deaths), 611 in Northumberland County (506 resolved with 12 deaths), 77 in Haliburton County (69 resolved with 1 death), and 698 in Hastings and Prince Edward counties (537 resolved with 7 deaths). The most recent death was reported in Hastings Prince Edward on April 10.

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).

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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: 993 (increase of 18)*
Total variants of concern cases: 281 (increase of 7)
Active cases: 104 (increase of 3)
Close contacts: 302 (increase of 30)
Deaths: 12 (no change)
Resolved: 877 (increase of 15)
Hospitalizations (total to date): 32 (no change)**
Total tests completed: Over 47,600 (increase of 100)
Outbreaks: Empress Gardens retirement home in Peterborough, Unidentified workplace #2 in Peterborough, Unidentified workplace #3 in Peterborough, Champlain Annex at Trent University in Peterborough, Thomas A. Stewart Secondary School in Peterborough, Unidentified workplace #4 in Peterborough County (no change)
Vaccine doses administered: 34,612 (increase of 4,179 as of April 8)

*The health unit is reporting 17 new cases in the last 24 hours, with 1 case from a previous day added to the total case count.

**As of April 9, Peterborough Regional Health Centre is reporting fewer than 10 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 (decrease of 2) and 33 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.

Confirmed positive: 1,310, including 622 in Kawartha Lakes, 611 in Northumberland, and 77 in Haliburton (increase of 21, including 6 in Kawartha Lakes and 15 in Northumberland)*
Cases with N501Y mutation: 121, including 42 in Kawartha Lakes, 77 in Northumberland, and 2 in Haliburton (increase of 3, including 1 in Kawartha Lakes, 1 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton)**
Active cases: 124, including 25 in Kawartha Lakes, 93 in Northumberland, and 7 in Haliburton (increase of 14, including 2 in Kawartha Lakes, 11 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton)
Probable cases: 2 in Northumberland (no change)
High-risk contacts: 410, including 53 in Kawartha Lakes, 254 in Northumberland, and 14 in Haliburton (net increase of 26)***
Hospitalizations (total to date): 53, including 32 in Kawartha Lakes, 18 in Northumberland, and 3 in Haliburton (no change)****
Deaths (including among probable cases): 68, including 55 in Kawartha Lakes, 12 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton (no change)
Resolved: 1,130, including 555 in Kawartha Lakes, 506 in Northumberland, 69 in Haliburton (increase of 10, including 5 in Kawartha Lakes and 5 in Northumberland)
Tests completed: 167,405 (increase of 3)
Vaccine doses administered: 30,408 (last updated April 6)
Number of people fully vaccinated: 2,989 (last updated April 6)
Outbreaks: St. Mary Catholic Secondary School in Cobourg, Timber House Resort in Brighton, Swiss Chalet in Cobourg, Christian Horizons in Port Hope, Cobourg Collegiate Institute in Cobourg (increase of 1)*****

*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.

**The N501Y mutation has been identified in variants of concern including the B.1.1.7 UK variant, the B.1.351 South Africa variant, and the P.1 Brazilian variant.

***This total includes an additional 89 high-risk contacts directly followed up through the Public Health Ontario contact tracing process that are missing the contacts’ county.

****As of April 9, Ross Memorial Hospital in Lindsay reports 5 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 (increase of 2).

*****An outbreak at Cobourg Collegiate Institute in Cobourg was declared on April 9.

 

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: 698 (increase of 10)
Confirmed variants of concern cases: 120 (increase of 12)
Active cases: 154 (decrease of 15)
Deaths: 7 (increase of 1)
Currently hospitalized: 8 (no change)
Currently hospitalized and in ICU: 3 (decrease of 1)
Currently hospitalized and in ICU on ventilator (total to date): 2 (no change)
Resolved: 537 (increase of 24)
Tests completed: 115,296
Vaccine doses administered: 40,747 (increase of 1,431)
Number of people fully vaccinated: 3,211 (increase of 7)
Outbreaks: Unidentified workplace in Trenton, Unidentified setting in Belleville, Unidentified child care facility in Belleville, Unidentified workplace in Quinte West, Tri-board Bus #499 (no change)

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Province of Ontario

Confirmed positive: 382,152 (increase of 3,813)
COVID-19 variants of concern (VOC) cases: 13,213 of B.1.1.7 UK variant (increase of 1,721); 76 of B.1.351 South Africa variant (no change); 134 of P.1 Brazilian variant (increase of 1)*
VOC R(t): 1.23 (decrease of 0.01, last updated April 2)**
7-day average of daily new cases: 3,371 (increase of 115)
Positivity rate: 6.5% (increase of 0.2%)
Resolved: 343,622 (increase of 2,422), 89.9% of all cases (decrease of 0.3%)
Hospitalizations: 1,524 (increase of 32)
Hospitalizations in ICU: 585 (increase of 33)
Hospitalizations in ICU on ventilator: 384 (increase of 25)
Deaths: 7,531 (increase of 19)
7-day average of daily new deaths: 15 (increase of 1)
Deaths of residents in long-term care homes: 3,907 (increase of 2)
Total tests completed: 13,091,981 (increase of 61,439)
Tests under investigation: 42,963 (increase of 391)
Vaccination doses administered: 3,044,949 (increase of 104,783), 20.67% of Ontario’s population (increase of 0.71%)***
People fully vaccinated (two doses): 330,982 (increase of 2,384), 2.25% of Ontario’s population (increase of 0.02%)***

*On April 8, the government changed the way it reports cases of the B.1.1.7 UK variant. Previously they were reported only when genetic sequencing confirmed they were of the B.1.1.7 lineage. Since genetic sequencing completed to date has determined 95% of specimens screening positive for the N501Y mutation have been found to be the B.1.1.7 UK variant, specimens with the N501Y mutation are now reported as cases of the B.1.1.7 UK variant.

**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.

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

COVID-19 cases in Ontario from March 10 - April 9, 2021. The red line is the number of new cases reported daily, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of new cases. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 cases in Ontario from March 10 – April 9, 2021. The red line is the number of new cases reported daily, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of new cases. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 tests completed in Ontario from March 10 - April 9, 2021. The red line is the daily number of tests completed, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of tests completed. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 tests completed in Ontario from March 10 – April 9, 2021. The red line is the daily number of tests completed, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of tests completed. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 hospitalizations and ICU admissions in Ontario from March 10 - April 9, 2021. The red line is the daily number of COVID-19 hospitalizations, the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of hospitalizations, the purple line is the daily number of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs, and the dotted orange line is a five-day moving average of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 hospitalizations and ICU admissions in Ontario from March 10 – April 9, 2021. The red line is the daily number of COVID-19 hospitalizations, the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of hospitalizations, the purple line is the daily number of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs, and the dotted orange line is a five-day moving average of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 deaths in Ontario from March 10 - April 9, 2021. The red line is the cumulative number of daily deaths, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of daily deaths. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 deaths in Ontario from March 10 – April 9, 2021. The red line is the cumulative number of daily deaths, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of daily deaths. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in Ontario from March 10 - April 9, 2021. The red line is the cumulative number of daily doses administered, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of daily doses. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in Ontario from March 10 – April 9, 2021. The red line is the cumulative number of daily doses administered, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of daily doses. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)

 

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

Emergency order allows Ontario hospitals overwhelmed by COVID-19 to transfer patients without their consent

By kawarthaNOW -
More than 30 patients from other regions have already been transferred to Peterborough Regional Health Centre under an earlier provincial directive. A new emergency order issued by the Ontario government which took effect April 9, 2021 will allow hospitals overwhelmed by COVID-19 to transfer patients to other hospitals without obtaining patient consent. (Photo: PRHC)

The Ontario government announced on Friday (April 9) it has issued two emergency orders to help hospitals cope with the surge in COVID-19 patients.

One of the temporary orders will allow hospitals “at significant and immediate risk of becoming overwhelmed” to transfer patients to another hospital, without requiring the consent of the patient or the patient’s substitute decision maker.

“During major surge events where the demand for critical care threatens to overwhelm a hospital, the province will allow hospitals the flexibility to transfer patients to alternate hospital sites without obtaining the consent of the patient or, where the patient is incapable, their substitute decision maker,” states a media release.

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“Hospitals may rely upon this order to facilitate the transfer of a patient to an alternate hospital site only when necessary to respond to a major surge event, when the attending physician is satisfied that the patient will receive the care they require at that other site and that the transfer can be effected without compromising the patient’s medical condition, and where all of the other conditions specified within the order have been met.”

The government says, when a major surge event is over, “reasonable efforts” would be made to transfer the patient back to the original hospital, or to another suitable location with the consent of the patient or substitute decision maker.

The other order will allow health care professionals and other workers in Home and Community Care Support Services organizations (formerly known as Local Health Integration Networks) and Ontario Health — such as care coordinators and nurses — to be redeployed to hospitals, with the organizations authorized to backfill the redeployed staff.

Both orders, which came into effect on Friday, remain in effect for two weeks unless revoked or extended under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act.

In addition to the two orders, the province has also instructed all hospitals — except those in northern Ontario — to ramp down all elective surgeries and non-urgent activities effecting Monday (April 12).

All three measures are expected to increase ICU capacity in the province by up to 1,000 patient beds, according to the government. There are currently 552 patients in Ontario ICUs because of a COVID-related critical illness, with 359 of these patients on ventilators.

The emergency order allowing patient transfers is in addition to an earlier provincial directive, which has already resulted in 33 patients from other regions being transferred to Peterborough Regional Health Centre.

Health unit orders Peterborough barber shop to close for defying provincial shutdown

By kawarthaNOW -
The Who’s Next barber shop is located at 72 Hunter Street East in Peterborough's East City. (Photo: Bruce Head / kawarthaNOW)

On Friday (April 9), Peterborough Public Health served the operator of a barber shop in Peterborough’s East City with a Section 22 order requiring him to close his premises.

The Who’s Next barber shop is located at 72 Hunter Street East in Peterborough.

Barber shops are among personal care service establishments that are required to close under the provincial state of emergency.

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“Personal service settings like hair salons and tattoo parlours are high risk for COVID-19 transmission because of the inability to maintain two metres distance,” states medical officer of health Dr. Rosana Salvaterra in a media release. “In fact, there is currently an active outbreak linked to another local personal service setting that has resulted in eight cases so far.”

Dr. Salvaterra added the health unit served the barber shop operator with a Section 22 order “because he has been wilfully defying the provincial order to close, despite warnings and charges laid under the Reopening Ontario Act.”

Failure to comply with the Section 22 order “will lead to an escalation of measures necessary to ensure that public health measures are being followed” according to the media release, which may include a fine of up to $5,000 for every day or part of each day on which the offence occurs or continues.

Sunset Park to remain as is with new Peterborough fire hall to be located at Northcrest Arena site

By Paul Rellinger -
Sunset Park, greenspace located at Sunset Boulevard and Chemong Road in Peterborough, was one of two remaining locations under consideration for the location of a new fire hall for the City of Peterborough. City staff will be recommending the fire hall be located at the site of the to-be-closed Northcrest Arena. (Photo: Google)

Among the many entertaining witticisms uttered by New York Yankees legend Yogi Berra, “It’s déjà vu all over again” remains high on the most memorable list.

For residents of the neighbourhood surrounding Sunset Park, it indeed felt just like that as they mobilized to fight the inclusion of that greenspace on the short list of consultant-recommended sites for a new north-end Peterborough fire hall.

Related story

City of Peterborough staff to recommend removing Inverlea Park from consideration as new fire hall location

Last year saw members of Friends of Inverlea Park vehemently protest that park’s inclusion on the short list, a movement that ultimately proved successful with Inverlea Park being dropped from new fire hall site consideration in January. In the aftermath, what was three recommended sites became two: Sunset Park where Sunset Boulevard meet Chemong Road, and the site of to-be-closed Northcrest Arena on Marina Boulevard.

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Enter Friends of Sunset Park, a residents’ group determined to let city councillors know, loudly and clearly, that their neighbourhood green space isn’t an option.

On Monday night (April 12), city councillors meeting at the committee level will vote on a staff recommendation that the new $11-million fire hall be located at the Northcrest Arena site.

According to Councillor Andrew Beamer, Peterborough Fire Services chair and one of two Northcrest Ward representatives, his council colleagues “will be very supportive” of the staff recommendation, which after Monday’s preliminary vote will go to full council April 26 for final approval.

“People are absolutely ecstatic,” says Monica Moran who, with Franco Mattiucci, started and organized Friends of Sunset Park to have “our neighbourhood gem” removed from the proposed site list.

The pair led an effort that saw flyers printed and distributed door-to-door and then collected with signatures of support attached. In addition, they liaised with members of Friends of Inverlea Park, not only calling on their protest experience but also borrowing their lawn signs, which were adapted to read ‘Save Sunset Park’.

“I do understand the importance of integrating fireballs with neighbourhoods,” says Moran.

“What we didn’t agree with is taking our park away or even being considered and being put on that list. To us, that is head shaking. Parks are for people, not fire halls.”

Mattiucci concurs, saying “It didn’t make any sense to me … I was very surprised they would consider (Sunset Park as a location for the new fire hall).”

Back in June of last year, the city hired Toronto-based Dillon Consulting to review city-owned properties where a new fire hall could be built to replace the 52-year-old often-flooded Fire Hall 2 on Carnegie Avenue. Therein, says Moran, lays the problem.

“I was born and raised in Peterborough … the tag line in the 1960s was Peterborough First,” says Moran.

“You employed local people and the money would go back into the community. Hiring consultants from Toronto … they don’t have exposure to what the city looks like. When that list came out, I thought ‘Holy mackerel. Do they not understand where Sunset Park is?’ To me it looked like they took at an aerial map and just picked out vacant land.”

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“People refer to it as vacant piece of land,” says Moran.

“They haven’t explored or walked through that park. The schools in our neighbourhood take students for walks there to learn firsthand about nature and wildlife and that kind of thing.”

Adding to Friends of Sunset Park’s concern, says Moran, was a perceived lack of promised public consultation starting in early 2021 regarding the Sunset Park location. She says in lieu of that, a short-term online survey was issued in February.

That, shes adds, was a problem for many of the neighbourhood’s senior residents who don’t have access to a computer. It was then that both she and Mattiucci undertook the door-to-door blitz distribution of some 200 flyers.

According to the report recommending the Northcrest Arena site authored by Peterborough Fire Services Chief Chris Snetsinger, there were 210 survey responses with 87 per cent of respondents in support of the Northcrest site and 13 per cent of respondents in favour of the Sunset Park site.

City of Peterborough staff will recommend to city council that the new $11-million Peterborough fire hall be located at the site of Northcrest Arena. (Photo: City of Peterborough)
City of Peterborough staff will recommend to city council that the new $11-million Peterborough fire hall be located at the site of Northcrest Arena. (Photo: City of Peterborough)

In addition, respondents indicated that support of green spaces and parks ranked as the most important consideration, with fire response times being the second consideration.

While Councillor Beamer wasn’t, and still isn’t, surprised by the resulting backlash from both neighbourhood groups, he says the consultants’ mandate was to look at the best possible sites with provincially mandated emergency response times front of mind.

“Putting a fire hall in any location is complex,” he says, acknowledging the Northcrest Arena site “was always the preference” over the park locations.

“A lot of factors have to be looked at. One of the top ones is emergency response time. You can’t build a new fire hall that’s three miles away from the nearest house.”

Councillor Beamer adds that once the Northcrest Arena site is approved by council, demolition of the arena will commence this fall as schematic designs of the new fire hall are made. He notes public consultation with those living in the area of the site will be held.

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“I don’t anticipate too much push back,” he says, adding “The expectation is that shovels will be in the ground in the spring of 2022.”

Admitting the fire hall site shortlist “created a lot of buzz,” Beamer says the exercise proved something he already knew — “Residents are passionate about their neighbourhoods.”

“At the end of the day, we’ll have a state-of-the-art fire hall. The north end is the fastest growing area of the city. Safety is priority number one. This will make sure the north end is well covered for emergency response times.”

Ahead, Beamer adds, is the identification of potential sites for yet another new fire hall in East City — a rapidly growing part of the city that does not have a fire hall.

“We’re already starting that process,” he says.

It’s déjà vu all over again.

Ontario reports record 4,227 COVID-19 cases, including 48 in greater Kawarthas region

By kawarthaNOW -
"I'm grateful to all the frontline health care heroes who are helping with this monumental effort and getting shots into arms, including mine." Ontario Premier Doug Ford receiving his first dose of the COVID-19 AstraZeneca vaccine at an Etobicoke pharmacy on April 9, 2021. (Photo: Office of the Premier)

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

Ontario is reporting a record-high single day increase of 4,227 new cases today, with 9 public health units in Ontario reporting triple-digit cases. The seven-day average of daily cases has increased by 163 to 3,256. The number of people hospitalized because of COVID-19, in ICUs, and on ventilators continues to increase.

There are now 11,492 cases of the B.1.1.7 UK variant in Ontario, an increase of 1,860 from yesterday, with 1 more case of the B.1.351 South Africa variant and 2 more cases of the P.1 Brazilian variant.

In the greater Kawarthas region, there are 48 new cases to report and an additional 40 cases resolved, with the number of active cases climbing by 10 to 381. See below for detailed numbers from each regional health unit.

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Most of today’s new cases are in Toronto (1,218), Peel (762), York (532), Durham (247), Ottawa (246), Halton (174), Middlesex-London (159), Hamilton (133), and Niagara (107).

There are double-digit increases today in Simcoe Muskoka (96), Windsor-Essex (69), Waterloo (67), Eastern Ontario (64), Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph (64), Lambton (35), Brant (30), Southwestern (24), Sudbury (23), Leeds, Grenville & Lanark (22), Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington (18), Grey Bruce (17), Haldimand-Norfolk (17), Hastings Prince Edward (16), Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge (16), Renfrew (12), and Peterborough (10), with smaller increases in Northwestern (9), Chatham-Kent (9), Porcupine (8), Huron Perth (8), and Thunder Bay (7).

The remaining 3 health units are reporting 5 or fewer new cases, with all health units reporting at least 1 cases.

Of today’s new cases, 57% are among people 39 and younger, with the highest number of cases (1,599) among people ages 20-39 followed by 1,229 cases among people ages 40-59 and 799 cases among people 19 and under.

With 2,641 more cases resolved since yesterday, the percentage of resolved cases has decreased by 0.3% to 90.2%. The average positivity rate across Ontario has increased by 0.3% to 6.3%, meaning that 63 out of every 1,000 tests performed were positive for COVID-19 on April 8.

Ontario is reporting 18 new COVID-19 deaths today, including 1 new death in a long-term care home. Ontario has averaged 14 new daily deaths over the past week, a decrease of 1 from yesterday.

The number of hospitalizations increased by 75 yesterday to 1,492, with the number of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs increasing by 27 to 552 and the number of patients with COVID-19 on ventilators increasing by 28 to 359.

With 61,410 tests completed yesterday, Ontario has administered more than 13 million tests during the pandemic. The backlog of tests under investigation has increased by 168 to 42,572.

A total of 2,940,166 doses of vaccine have now been administered, an increase of 105,382, with 328,598 people fully vaccinated with both doses of vaccine, an increase of 2,238.

The number of fully vaccinated people represents 2.23% of Ontario’s population, an increase of 0.01% from yesterday, with fully and partially vaccinated people representing 19.96% of the population, an increase of 0.72% from yesterday. An estimated 70-90% of the population must be immunized to achieve herd immunity.

There are 199 new cases in Ontario schools, a decrease of 102 from yesterday, including 160 student cases, 36 staff cases, and 3 cases among unidentified people. There are 67 new cases in licensed child care settings in Ontario, a decrease of 85 from yesterday, including 39 cases among children and 28 cases among staff.

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In the greater Kawarthas region, there are 48 new cases to report, including 18 in Hastings Prince Edward, 15 in Peterborough, 12 in Northumberland, 2 in Kawartha Lakes, and 1 in Haliburton.

An outbreak at an unidentified workplace in Peterborough County was declared on April 9.

There are 6 new hospitalizations in Hastings Prince Edward, including 4 people in ICU and 2 on ventilators.

There are 26 new regional cases of variants of concern, including 16 in Hastings Prince Edward and 10 in Peterborough.

An additional 40 cases have been resolved, including 20 in Hastings Prince Edward, 8 in Northumberland, 6 in Peterborough, 5 in Kawartha Lakes, and 1 in Haliburton. An outbreak at The Richmond Retirement Residence in Belleville was declared resolved on April 9.

There are currently 381 active cases in the greater Kawarthas region, an increase of 10 from yesterday, including 169 in Hastings Prince Edward (51 in Quinte West, 70 in Belleville, 8 in Tyendinaga & Deseronto, 3 in Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory, 15 in Prince Edward County, 20 in Central Hastings, and 1 in North Hastings), 101 in Peterborough, 82 in Northumberland, 23 in Kawartha Lakes, and 6 in Haliburton.

Since the pandemic began in the greater Kawarthas region, there have been 975 confirmed positive cases in the Peterborough area (862 resolved with 12 deaths), 615 in the City of Kawartha Lakes (550 resolved with 55 deaths), 595 in Northumberland County (501 resolved with 12 deaths), 76 in Haliburton County (69 resolved with 1 death), and 688 in Hastings and Prince Edward counties (513 resolved with 6 deaths). The most recent death was reported in Peterborough on April 8.

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).

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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: 975 (increase of 15)
Total variants of concern cases: 274 (increase of 10)
Active cases: 101 (increase of 9)
Close contacts: 272 (increase of 15)
Deaths: 12 (no change)
Resolved: 862 (increase of 6)
Hospitalizations (total to date): 32 (no change)*
Total tests completed: Over 47,500 (no change)
Outbreaks: Empress Gardens retirement home in Peterborough, Unidentified workplace #2 in Peterborough, Unidentified workplace #3 in Peterborough, Champlain Annex at Trent University in Peterborough, Thomas A. Stewart Secondary School in Peterborough, Unidentified workplace #4 in Peterborough County (increase of 1)*
Vaccine doses administered: 34,612 (increase of 4,179 as of April 8)

*As of April 9, Peterborough Regional Health Centre is reporting fewer than 10 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 (decrease of 2) and 33 patients transferred from other areas as a result of a provincial directive (no change).

**An outbreak at an unidentified workplace in Peterborough County was declared on April 9.

 

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.

Confirmed positive: 1,286, including 615 in Kawartha Lakes, 595 in Northumberland, and 76 in Haliburton (increase of 15, including 2 in Kawartha Lakes, 12 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton)*
Cases with N501Y mutation: 118, including 41 in Kawartha Lakes, 76 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton (no change)**
Active cases: 111, including 23 in Kawartha Lakes, 82 in Northumberland, and 6 in Haliburton (net increase of 4)
Probable cases: 2 in Northumberland (no change)
High-risk contacts: 384, including 54 in Kawartha Lakes, 233 in Northumberland, and 15 in Haliburton (net increase of 27)***
Hospitalizations (total to date): 53, including 32 in Kawartha Lakes, 18 in Northumberland, and 3 in Haliburton (no change)****
Deaths (including among probable cases): 68, including 55 in Kawartha Lakes, 12 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton (no change)
Resolved: 1,120, including 550 in Kawartha Lakes, 501 in Northumberland, 69 in Haliburton (increase of 14, including 5 in Kawartha Lakes, 8 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton)
Tests completed: 167,402 (increase of 3)
Vaccine doses administered: 30,408 (last updated April 6)
Number of people fully vaccinated: 2,989 (last updated April 6)
Outbreaks: St. Mary Catholic Secondary School in Cobourg, Timber House Resort in Brighton, Swiss Chalet in Cobourg, Christian Horizons in Port Hope (no 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.

**The N501Y mutation has been identified in variants of concern including the B.1.1.7 UK variant, the B.1.351 South Africa variant, and the P.1 Brazilian variant.

***This total includes an additional 84 high-risk contacts directly followed up through the Public Health Ontario contact tracing process that are missing the contacts’ county.

****As of April 9, Ross Memorial Hospital in Lindsay reports 5 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 (increase of 2).

 

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: 688 (increase of 18)
Confirmed variants of concern cases: 108 (increase of 16)
Active cases: 169 (decrease of 2)
Deaths: 6 (no change)
Currently hospitalized: 8 (increase of 6)
Currently hospitalized and in ICU: 4 (increase of 4)
Currently hospitalized and in ICU on ventilator (total to date): 2 (increase of 2)
Resolved: 513 (increase of 20)
Tests completed: 88,320
Vaccine doses administered: 39,316 (increase of 1,329)
Number of people fully vaccinated: 3,204 (increase of 5)
Outbreaks: Unidentified workplace in Trenton, Unidentified setting in Belleville, Unidentified child care facility in Belleville, Unidentified workplace in Quinte West, Tri-board Bus #499 (decrease of 1)*

*An outbreak at The Richmond Retirement Residence in Belleville was declared resolved on April 9.

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Province of Ontario

Confirmed positive: 378,339 (increase of 4,227)
COVID-19 variants of concern (VOC) cases: 11,492 of B.1.1.7 UK variant (increase of 1,860); 76 of B.1.351 South Africa variant (increase of 1); 133 of P.1 Brazilian variant (increase of 2)*
VOC R(t): 1.23 (decrease of 0.01, last updated April 2)**
7-day average of daily new cases: 3,256 (increase of 163)
Positivity rate: 6.3% (increase of 0.3%)
Resolved: 341,200 (increase of 2,641), 90.2% of all cases (decrease of 0.3%)
Hospitalizations: 1,492 (increase of 75)
Hospitalizations in ICU: 552 (increase of 27)
Hospitalizations in ICU on ventilator: 359 (increase of 28)
Deaths: 7,512 (increase of 18)
7-day average of daily new deaths: 14 (decrease of 1)
Deaths of residents in long-term care homes: 3,905 (increase of 1)
Total tests completed: 13,030,542 (increase of 61,410)
Tests under investigation: 42,572 (increase of 168)
Vaccination doses administered: 2,940,166 (increase of 105,382), 19.96% of Ontario’s population (increase of 0.72%)***
People fully vaccinated (two doses): 328,598 (increase of 2,238), 2.23% of Ontario’s population (increase of 0.01%)***

*On April 8, the government changed the way it reports cases of the B.1.1.7 UK variant. Previously they were reported only when genetic sequencing confirmed they were of the B.1.1.7 lineage. Since genetic sequencing completed to date has determined 95% of specimens screening positive for the N501Y mutation have been found to be the B.1.1.7 UK variant, specimens with the N501Y mutation are now reported as cases of the B.1.1.7 UK variant.

**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.

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

COVID-19 cases in Ontario from March 9 - April 8, 2021. The red line is the number of new cases reported daily, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of new cases. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 cases in Ontario from March 9 – April 8, 2021. The red line is the number of new cases reported daily, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of new cases. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 tests completed in Ontario from March 9 - April 8, 2021. The red line is the daily number of tests completed, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of tests completed. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 tests completed in Ontario from March 9 – April 8, 2021. The red line is the daily number of tests completed, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of tests completed. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 hospitalizations and ICU admissions in Ontario from March 9 - April 8, 2021. The red line is the daily number of COVID-19 hospitalizations, the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of hospitalizations, the purple line is the daily number of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs, and the dotted orange line is a five-day moving average of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 hospitalizations and ICU admissions in Ontario from March 9 – April 8, 2021. The red line is the daily number of COVID-19 hospitalizations, the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of hospitalizations, the purple line is the daily number of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs, and the dotted orange line is a five-day moving average of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 deaths in Ontario from March 9 - April 8, 2021. The red line is the cumulative number of daily deaths, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of daily deaths. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 deaths in Ontario from March 9 – April 8, 2021. The red line is the cumulative number of daily deaths, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of daily deaths. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in Ontario from March 9 - April 8, 2021. The red line is the cumulative number of daily doses administered, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of daily doses. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)
COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in Ontario from March 9 – April 8, 2021. The red line is the cumulative number of daily doses administered, and the dotted green line is a five-day moving average of daily doses. (Graphic: kawarthaNOW.com)

 

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

A leaf of faith: Tiny Greens plant shop in downtown Peterborough makes tough decisions to adjust to pandemic

By Hannah Abrahamse -
Tiny Bromley's Tiny Green Plant Shop in downtown Peterborough offers a huge selection of plants, pots, arrangements, and accessories. Prior to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, Tiny Greens was also a food and micro-greenery business, but has since closed those offerings to expand their retail space. Under the current government restrictions, Tiny Greens is classified as an indoor greenhouse that engages in retail sales and is open for in-person shopping (maximum of five customers at a time) and also offers curbside pickup. (Photo courtesy of Tiny Greens)

It’s no secret that most small businesses have been in survival mode over the past year of COVID-19 shutdowns and restrictions.

This story is one of an ongoing series by kawarthaNOW in support of locally owned businesses.

For Tina Bromley, owner of Tiny Greens plant shop in downtown Peterborough, it was survival that motivated her decision to shut down the food portion of her business and focus instead on selling plants and giftware.

Prior to the pandemic, a significant portion of Bromley’s small business was dedicated to the production of microgreens — nutrient-rich seedlings of edible vegetables and herbs — as well as a café and smoothie and juice bar. Bromley says closing these facets of her business was a tough decision, but she had to do what would keep her business alive.

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“I am a single mom with three kids and I had to make it,” Bromley explains. “The food and juice — there was just no business (due to the pandemic). I decided to emotionally un-attach. Our plant and giftware shop was doing so well, so I made the decision to shut the smoothie and juice bar and the café microgreen production while we continued to build the website.”

Transitioning to online sales was another major pivot for Tiny Green. Before the pandemic, their website was only used for publicity to draw new clients into the bricks-and-mortar location and had no online store. Without a functioning online store, Bromley had no revenue stream during the first OVID-19 lockdown.

“We quickly worked on our website and got that up and going,” Bromley recalls. “Putting everything online was a huge to-do.”

Tina Bromley, owner of Tiny Green Plant Shop in downtown Peterborough, won a free year-long lease of her storefront through the Win This Space Peterborough contest in 2017. Since then, she has garnered several awards, including a Business Excellence Award from the Peterborough Chamber of Commerce and a Sustainable Peterborough award in 2019. (Photo courtesy of Tiny Greens)
Tina Bromley, owner of Tiny Green Plant Shop in downtown Peterborough, won a free year-long lease of her storefront through the Win This Space Peterborough contest in 2017. Since then, she has garnered several awards, including a Business Excellence Award from the Peterborough Chamber of Commerce and a Sustainable Peterborough award in 2019. (Photo courtesy of Tiny Greens)

According to Bromley, online sales have been an incredible asset during the pandemic as Tiny Greens has able to offer curbside pickup during store closures. However, the shop does not have a full-time employee for the website — which is what it would take to get everything in the very large plant shop onto a website.

While the Tiny Greens website has a great selection, there’s 60 to 70 per cent more product inside the store itself. While Bromley’s plant shop is named Tiny Greens, it’s a reference to her original focus on microgreens rather than the size of the shop, which is itself quite large.

Shutting down portions of the pre-pandemic business has allowed Bromely to continually expand her plant and giftware shop. Now, all the space previously used for the smoothie and juice bar, kitchen, and microgreen production, has been emptied and filled with plants, pots, and home decor — well-received additions since plant sales have blossomed during the pandemic.

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“I don’t know if plants have ever been more appreciated than they are right now,” says Bromley. “They’re good for mental health and air purification. They cheer up an environment and make people happy. They are one of the most beautiful gifts you can give someone.”

“People are investing more money in their homes and in their environments to feel good and make their home their haven,” she adds. “We also have so many plants that are animal friendly. Often plant lovers are also animal lovers. ”

The increased demand for plants is a bright side to a challenging year for Tiny Greens. Bromley says she loves seeing customers of all ages and genders coming together online through a shared love of plants.

“Plants really are for everyone,” she says. “We get to see a lot of joy.”

Tiny Greens is a family business, with owner Tina Bromley's 15-year-old daughter Kiana running the store's popular Instagram account @tinygreensca, where you can findsales, promotions, and giveaways, in addition to showing off beautiful pictures of the store's merchandise. The Instagram account also serves as an interactive space for plant lovers to build community. (Photo courtesy of Tiny Greens)
Tiny Greens is a family business, with owner Tina Bromley’s 15-year-old daughter Kiana running the store’s popular Instagram account @tinygreensca, where you can findsales, promotions, and giveaways, in addition to showing off beautiful pictures of the store’s merchandise. The Instagram account also serves as an interactive space for plant lovers to build community. (Photo courtesy of Tiny Greens)

Tiny Green’s popular Instagram page, run by Bromley’s 15-year-old daughter Kiana, is a fun interactive space for plant lovers. Here, Tiny Greens promotes its latest sales and other fun initiatives such as giveaways.

“One benefit that came out of (COVID-19) is I did acquire new clientele from people just searching online and having no idea we were already here downtown,” Bromley notes. “New customers have meant the world because, having to close the food and drink side of the business, I needed to find a way to get more customers.”

Another portion of the shop that has been lost during the pandemic is a workshop space for customers. Staff would assist customers in picking a plant, pot, and decorations, and then the customers would sit down for DIY planting. Bromley hopes to reopen this portion of the shop in the future but, until then, Tiny Greens offers a creative alternative.

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“We have some kits that are already made and we can also make up new kits for people,” says Bromley. “You can still have fun picking your plant, pot, and decorations. We can help assist you if you’re building a terrarium or a multi-planted pot arrangement. We’ll help you with what plants work well together, teach you a little bit about design, and then you can do it at home.”

For those visiting the store, Bromley says they’ve tried to create an appealing, beautiful, and safe experience for everyone who comes in. Under the current government restrictions, Tiny Greens is classified as an indoor greenhouse that engages in retail sales and is permitted to operate at a 25 per cent capacity — this allows them to have a maximum of five customers inside the store at any one time. For those who would like to make a purchase without coming inside the shop, Tiny Greens offers curbside pickup for any items sold on their website (and they are always adding more).

Bromley also notes that her staff is on a strict cleaning schedule, including sanitizing shopping baskets after each use and wiping down high-touch areas throughout the day. Employees wear personal protective equipment and ensure there is enough space for physical distancing for those in the shop.

As an alternative to the Tiny Greens' DIY planting workshop station fo customers, which is closed during the pandemic, the plant shop offers pre-packaged planting kits that include a succulent, a character pot, and decorations. The kits (which make great gifts) can be purchased in-store or ordered online for curbside pickup. (Photo courtesy of Tiny Greens)
As an alternative to the Tiny Greens’ DIY planting workshop station fo customers, which is closed during the pandemic, the plant shop offers pre-packaged planting kits that include a succulent, a character pot, and decorations. The kits (which make great gifts) can be purchased in-store or ordered online for curbside pickup. (Photo courtesy of Tiny Greens)

“I have a really amazing staff,” Bromley notes. “I don’t know where I would have been without them — they make it possible for me to be able to go home and be with my children and know that the shop is taken care of. Customers rave about them all the time.”

When asked about what the community can do to support her business during this challenging time, Bromley tells kawarthaNOW she feels odd to be asking for rather than giving community support.

“The one thing that I’ve enjoyed so much as a business owner is you can give back to the community in levels that you never could before you owned a business,” Bromley explains. “You see how much it’s possible, and it makes you such a strong interactive member of the community. I miss that. I felt very involved in the community.”

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“I was used to giving and it felt good,” she adds. “So it was the oddest feeling in the world to suddenly be isolated and have it be about me and how I’m going to survive.”

That said, Bromley does ask the community to remember their locally owned businesses, follow and support their social media accounts, and tell their friends if they have a good experience at any local shop.

“If someone gives me a nice comment on my Facebook or Instagram, or if someone comes in and tells me that their friend said they just had to come in, that picks me up,” she says. “I’m really thankful for all of the community support.”

Tiny Greens in downtown Peterborough offers a wide range of plants and pots as well as planting kits. The store is open for in-person shopping during the provincial shutdown and you can also can order a selection of items from the shop's website for curbside pickup. Gift cards are also available. (Photo courtesy of Tiny Greens)
Tiny Greens in downtown Peterborough offers a wide range of plants and pots as well as planting kits. The store is open for in-person shopping during the provincial shutdown and you can also can order a selection of items from the shop’s website for curbside pickup. Gift cards are also available. (Photo courtesy of Tiny Greens)

Tiny Greens plant shop is located at 431 George Street North in Peterborough. The shop is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Saturday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday for in-person shopping and curbside pickup.

For more information about the plant shop and to place an order for curbside pickup, you can visit the Tiny Greens website at www.tinygreens.ca.

You can also support Tiny Greens on social media by following them on Facebook and Instagram.

 

This story has been updated to reflect that Tiny Greens is open for in-person shopping (at 25 per cent capacity) during the provincial shutdown.

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