Kawartha Lakes police have issued a warrant for the arrest of 34-year-old Joshua Innes.
Innes is wanted for aggravated assault, assault with a weapon, possession of weapon for dangerous purpose, and fail to comply with probation order, related to a stabbing incident in Lindsay.
On April 18, a 29-year-old man showed up at Ross Memorial Hospital in Lindsay with stab wounds following an incident in the area of Mary Street West and James Street in Lindsay.
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If you have any information about the whereabouts of Innes, call 9-1-1.
If you wish to provide information anonymously, you can contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or online at www.khcrimestoppers.com.
The Link, a new rural transportation service connecting Selwyn Township and Curve Lake First Nation to Peterborough, launches on May 3, 2021. The pilot service uses full accessible 15-passenger buses operated by Peterborough Transit. (Photo: City of Peterborough)
The Link, a new rural transportation service connecting Selwyn Township and Curve Lake First Nation to Peterborough, launches next Monday (May 3) — and rides are free for the entire month of May.
The Link is a pilot project of Selwyn Township, Curve Lake First Nation, Community Care Peterborough, and the City of Peterborough, funded with a $1.48-million grant under the Ontario government’s Community Transportation Grant program.
With 15-passenger buses operated by Peterborough Transit, The Link will provide access to and from major hubs within Selwyn Township and Curve Lake First Nation with connections to the Peterborough Transit system at Trent University.
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There are two routes: Route 31 runs between Peterborough, Lakefield, and Curve Lake First Nation, and Route 32 runs between Peterborough, Bridgenorth, and Ennismore. While all buses used by the system are full accessible, not all bus stops are fully accessible.
The Link passes and fares include a single transfer to Peterborough Transit, good for 90 minutes. At Trent University, The Link passengers can connect with four different Peterborough Transit routes (Route 2 Chemong, Route 3 Park, Route 6 Sherbrooke, and Route 8 Monaghan).
The free service during the month of May includes a one-time transfer, if required, to a Peterborough Transit trip. Beginning in June, you can ride The Link by purchasing a two-ride bus pass for $15, a 10-ride buss pass for $50, or a monthly pass for $150. Customers can also purchase a single ride cash fare for $8 (coins only, no bills accepted).
Rides on The Link rural transportation service will be free for the month of May 2021. (Graphic: Selwyn Township)
As with Peterborough Transit, face coverings are mandatory on The Link buses.
For more information about The Link, including routes, bus stops (including accessible stops), schedules, and fares, visit selwyntownship.ca/thelink.
To help promote the new service, Selwyn Township is also launching a ‘Spot the Bus’ social media contest, where you can win one of three free 10-ride bus passes for The Link. Each pass is a value of $50.
To enter, take a selfie of yourself on the bus, with the bus, or just a photo of the bus running along The Link transit routes. Post the photo on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter with the hashtag #RideTheLink and tag @selwyntownship, and comment with your photo on Selwyn Township’s ‘Spot the Bus’ contest posts on social media.
After two seasons of recording live performances by Peterborough-area musicians in the Norwood-area barn studio space he owns with his wife Linda, Andy Tough will embark on a third season of Live! at the Barn for summer 2021. Musicians will include Melissa Payne and Dylan Ireland, Nicholas Campbell and the Two Metre Cheaters, SJ Riley, The Raggedy Andys, Elyse Saunders, and The Soda Jerks. Recording of performances will begin in June and streamed on YouTube starting in mid-August. (Photo courtesy of Andy and Linda Tough)
As continued pandemic restrictions threaten to see 2021 mimic its predecessor, what seemed like a good idea last year has evolved into a hope-sustaining lifeline for musicians whose sanity is dependent on live performance opportunities.
Live! at the Barn — a YouTube-featured compilation of live-off-the-floor performances produced, recorded, and edited by Andy Tough in the Norwood-area barn studio space he owns with his wife Linda — is returning for a third series with recording set to start in June.
Featured acts this time around are folk-roots duo Melissa Payne and Dylan Ireland, swing-rockabilly guitarist Nicholas Campbell and the Two Metre Cheaters, multi-music genre singer-songwriter SJ Riley, reggae-influenced rock band The Raggedy Andys, pop country singer-songwriter Elyse Saunders, and classic rock ‘n’ roll tribute band The Soda Jerks.
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Similar to the first two series, each act isn’t charged for Tough’s time and talents, and is given a recording of their performance to do with as they please.
According to Tough, the plan is to have each performance edited for their premiere starting in mid August on his YouTube channel, where performances by the 10 acts featured in the first two series can also be accessed.
“People are watching, for sure,” Tough says, noting views of his channel have increased by 11,000 since the first series debuted with close to 100 new subscribers on board. In addition, individual song selections from each performance have been regularly posted on Linda’s Facebook page, bringing even more views the way of each act.
“It’s one of those things where you throw it online and see if anybody bites,” says Tough, adding “Streaming in general is pretty much the only way to see music (performed) anymore.”
The line-up of musicians for the third season of Andy Tough’s Live! at the Barn series of recorded live performances. Recording is set to begin at the Tough family’s Norwood-area barn studio in June with a YouTube premiere in mid August. (Photos supplied by Andy Tough)
Asked if he’s fearful that streaming fatigue is setting in, both on the part of performers and those watching online, Tough acknowledges “There’s an inundation of people putting their stuff out there.”
Still, he says the finished product has improved greatly since the advent of the pandemic.
“It’s better in terms of quality. It’s more watchable. It used to be that it was just cellphone video. That doesn’t do an artist any good at all. I’m sure that most artists out there have boned up on their technical skills in terms of being able to capture themselves on camera and produce good audio. The bar has been raised. That and people are more comfortable now going on online. There’s no more flashing lights on your VCR.”
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One thing that hasn’t changed is Live! at the Barn is as therapeutic for Tough as it is for each musician who takes to his stage. His core business, RMS Events, a multimedia enterprise specializing in audio/video production and presentation, has been obliterated by the restrictions on large gatherings.
“For us it’s a fantastic opportunity to heal by music in our barn,” he says, adding “Working with the bands and getting their input and seeing their energy — that comes right back at you. Energy in. Energy out.”
“Everybody was hoping and praying this year would be different than last year. It isn’t. I can’t foresee any big live events happening any time soon and that is depressing for a lot of people, myself included. But we’ve got a model that we developed last year on the fly and now we can continue to move forward with it and get more musicians involved.”
VIDEO: Live! at the Barn: A New Season
Along with the technical aspects of each performance recording that he oversees, Tough has also had to be very mindful of pandemic restrictions — what’s allowed and what’s not in terms of bringing acts into his barn space.
“Now that we’ve all lived with COVID for more than a year, there are established protocols and rules … last summer everybody was just trying to figure it out,” he says.
“Because the barn is what the barn is, and the size of the stage, and the fact that it is essentially an outdoor location — we’re not dealing with air circulation and stuff like that — the venue is already sort of ideal for being able to continue to do stuff.”
“The other point is this is a private studio. It’s film production. We’re not putting on a concert. The rules around that are different. As a production, you are controlling the situation. It’s not like people are wandering wherever they want and not wearing their masks. We’re toeing the line in terms of all the protocols.”
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New for this series of recording, he notes, is the addition of Mylar screens separating the singers on stage, noting “Because we don’t have an audience we don’t have to worry about front-facing screens.”
“When we first started last year there was a stipulation that you could only have five people gathering on private property, so we asked for three-piece bands. It’s the same kind of thing now. We’re able to adjust our production to fit the protocols. Even if we are in the red zone (during the summer), we still have the proper precautions which will allow us to continue to shoot.”
With the help of his former neighbour Mike Chowns, who has extensive staging experience working with 4th Line Theatre and the Gordon Best Theatre, Tough has been able to share “the heavy lifting” as well as draw on Chowns’ “creative eye” for stage appearance and background.
For the third season of his Live! at the Barn series, Andy Tough (left) has enlisted the help of his former neighbour Mike Chowns (right), who has extensive staging experience working with 4th Line Theatre and the Gordon Best Theatre. (Photo courtesy of Andy and Linda Tough)
But what viewers of the series will more dramatically notice is the heightened quality of each recorded performance, courtesy of Tough’s purchase of a high-definition system that records onto SD cards. In addition, he has also purchased extra cameras that are also high-definition as well as updated his post-production editing system.
“The quality is going to be amazing,” assures Tough. “You’ll see a lot more detail.”
Such upgrades, of course, come at a cost. Despite his vow that “We’re going to do this regardless of whether we get paid or not,” Tough says “there’s an opportunity for advertisers now that this is a thing as opposed to a concept.”
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“This isn’t a charity. It’s a business. It’s media exposure. It’s an opportunity for businesses to show their support (of local musicians). Government support has helped but it’s a trickle in the stream. More people have to step up and show their support. It’s not like you have to pay an arm and a leg. You can become a patron. Make a small donation and you’re listed in the credits.”
Those interested in advertising or sponsoring can email Tough at andy@rmsevents.ca.
As a long-time supporter of local music, kawarthaNOW.com remains on board as a media sponsor of Live! at the Barn. That tie will be strengthened this series, with this writer having been enlisted as the interviewer of each act for segments that are edited into each performance recording.
Preparing the stage for the third season of the Live! at the Barn series at Andy and Linda Tough’s Norwood-area barn studio space. As a film production, there will be no live audience and Mylar screens will separate the singers on stage. The third season will have enhanced video and audio thanks to upgraded equipment and technology. (Photo courtesy of Andy and Linda Tough)
“We get a sense for who these people are as opposed to just seeing them onstage,” says Tough of the interview segments.
Whether or not the series will continue after this summer’s instalment is streamed, that’s up to severity of the pandemic moving forward. One thing certain is Tough won’t be idle, combining his video and audio production talents with his unabashed passion for local music and those who bring it to us.
One thing he’s mulling over is producing a documentary that draws on material gathered over the course of Live! at the Barn recordings.
“They all have different perspectives,” Tough says of the performing musicians. “They all have different dreams and different fears. It’s really quite a cross-section of society. It would be interesting to pull that together.”
Dr. Sally Chivers, professor of English and Gender & Women's Studies at Trent University, pictured at the 2020 ReFrame Film Festival. Since joining Trent in 2003, Chivers has had a far-reaching impact in the interdisciplinary study of aging and society, with work spanning five disciplines: Canadian studies, film, disability, age, and women's studies. (Supplied photo)
Trent University is honouring Dr. Sally Chivers with its Distinguished Research Award, which is presented annually to a faculty member in recognition of outstanding achievements in research and scholarship.
Professor Chivers, who is being recognized for her significant contributions to the interdisciplinary study of aging and research in disability, is professor of English and Gender & Women’s Studies at Trent University and co-founded the Trent Centre for Aging & Society, of which she was also the director.
“Dr. Chivers’ outstanding contributions to knowledge creation and her innovative approach to examining pressing issues of aging and care have played a major role in shaping research in this field, and rightly earned her international recognition as a top scholar of age and disability studies,” says Dr. Cathy Bruce, Trent’s acting vice-president of research and innovation. “Professor Chivers is a prolific scholar and worthy recipient of this prestigious award.”
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Professor Chivers will be presented with the award at Trent University’s Celebration of Excellence: Teaching and Research virtual event on Monday, May 3rd.
“Trent is the ideal place to embark on research that cuts across boundaries and makes a difference, while remaining creative and engaging,” says Professor Chivers. “I am so grateful to have been able to come here to follow in impressive age studies footsteps, while also developing national and international collaborations with remarkable colleagues who want to build a better world for all of us as we age.”
“That dozens of such colleagues joined in supporting this nomination is testament to the generative spirit of critical gerontology, age studies, and health humanities,” she adds.
Since joining Trent in 2003, Dr. Chivers has had a far-reaching impact in the interdisciplinary study of aging and society, according to a media release from the university, with work spanning five disciplines: Canadian studies, film, disability, age, and women’s studies.
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“I feel like now I’m at a place where I really can talk about how the ways we imagine aging affect everyday life, and how the everyday life affects how we imagine aging,” Professor Chivers says. “I’m continually surprised by how the stories we tell about aging matter.”
Over her career, she has received various research funding awards, including several major grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, the most recent of which was to study the popular depictions of nursing homes, how the media curates a fear of institutional life, and how that fear is proliferated.
Professor Chivers has also authored four books and more than 35 articles and book chapters, which have been quoted in esteemed publications including The New Yorker, The Guardian, and Maclean’s.
Here’s an update on COVID-19 cases in Ontario as well as in the greater Kawarthas region.
Ontario is reporting 3,510 new cases today, with Toronto reporting 1,051 cases and 5 other health units reporting triple-digit increases. The seven-day average of daily cases has decreased by 135 to 3,917 — the first time since April 13 the seven-day average has dropped below 4,000. There are 2,038 more cases of the B.1.1.7 UK variant and 84 more cases of the P.1 Brazilian variant.
After three days of decreases, hospitalizations have increased again, and more than 10% of hospitals did not submit data for today’s report so the number of patients may actually be higher than reported. The number of ICU admissions and patients on ventilators have both reached new record highs.
The Ontario government has made a formal request to the Canadian Armed Forces to provide specialized nurses to assist in ICUs and other medical personnel for hospitals, as well as “logistical and operational support as we seek to augment our response to COVID-19”, according to a statement from Solicitor General Sylvia Jones’ office.
Ontario is reporting 24 deaths today, with 200 deaths reporting over the past week. One of those deaths included 13-year-old Emily Victoria Viegas of Brampton, who died on April 22 after contracting COVID-19 and developing pneumonia.
In the greater Kawarthas region, there are 40 new cases to report and an additional 61 cases resolved, with the number of active cases decreasing by 22 to 246.
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Most of the new cases reported today are in Toronto (1,051), Peel (909), York (391), Durham (244), Ottawa (206), and Halton (143).
There are double-digit increases reported today in Middlesex-London (83), Simcoe Muskoka (79), Hamilton (71), Windsor-Essex (62), Waterloo (49), Haldimand-Norfolk (29), Brant (28), Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph (28), Niagara (23), Sudbury (18), Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington (17), Southwestern (16), Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge (15), Eastern Ontario (11), and Peterborough (10), with smaller increases in Grey Bruce (9), Renfrew (8), Chatham-Kent (8), Northwestern (7), Hastings Prince Edward (7), and Leeds, Grenville & Lanark (7).
The remaining 7 health units are reporting 5 or fewer new cases, with 1 health unit (Porcupine) reporting no new cases at all.
Of today’s new cases, 57% are among people 39 and younger, with the highest number of cases (1,326) among people ages 20-39 followed by 1,021 cases among people ages 40-59 and 665 cases among people 19 and under.
With 4,057 more cases resolved since yesterday, the percentage of resolved cases has increased by 0.2% to at 89.2% — the seventh straight day the percentage of resolved cases has increased. The average positivity rate across Ontario has increased by 2.2% to 10.9%, meaning that 109 out of every 1,000 tests performed were positive for COVID-19 on April 25.
Ontario is reporting 24 new COVID-19 deaths today, with no new deaths in long-term care homes. Ontario has averaged 29 new daily deaths over the past week, an increase of 1 from yesterday.
The number of hospitalizations has increased by 145 to 2,271, but more than 10% of hospitals did not submit data for this report so the number of hospitalized patients may actually be higher. The number of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs has increased by 26 to a new record high of 877, and the number of patients with COVID-19 on ventilators has increased by 9 to a new record high of 605.
A total of 33,822 tests were completed yesterday, with the backlog of tests under investigation decreasing by 8,272 to 17,369.
A total of 4,696,211 doses of vaccine have now been administered, an increase of 69,308 from yesterday, with 361,166 people fully vaccinated with both doses of vaccine, an increase of 812 from yesterday.
The number of fully vaccinated people represents 2.45% of Ontario’s population (no change from yesterday), with fully and partially vaccinated people representing 31.88% of the population, an increase of 0.47% 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 40 new cases to report, including 13 in Kawartha Lakes, 12 in Northumberland, 9 in Hastings Prince Edward, 4 in Peterborough, and 2 in Haliburton. Case numbers for Kawartha Lakes, Northumberland, and Haliburton are over the past 2 days, as the health unit did not issue an update on Sunday.
There are 24 new regional cases of variants of concern, including 10 in Hastings Prince Edward, 5 in Peterborough, 5 in Northumberland, 3 in Haliburton, and 1 in Kawartha Lakes.
There are 2 new ICU admissions and 2 new patients on ventilators in Hastings Prince Edward.
An additional 61 cases have been resolved, including 21 in Peterborough, 20 in Northumberland, 10 in Hastings Prince Edward, 9 in Kawartha Lakes, and 1 in Haliburton. Outbreaks at Grafton Public School in Grafton and Mariposa Elementary School in Oakwood have been declared resolved.
There are currently 246 active cases in the greater Kawarthas region, a decrease of 22 from yesterday, including 76 in Peterborough, 76 in Hastings Prince Edward (14 in Quinte West, 39 in Belleville, 2 in Tyendinaga & Deseronto, 5 in Prince Edward County, 13 in Central Hastings, and 3 in North Hastings), 46 in Northumberland, 39 in Kawartha Lakes, and 9 in Haliburton.
Since the pandemic began in the greater Kawarthas region, there have been 1,179 confirmed positive cases in the Peterborough area (1,090 resolved with 13 deaths), 704 in the City of Kawartha Lakes (622 resolved with 56 deaths), 796 in Northumberland County (737 resolved with 13 deaths), 98 in Haliburton County (88 resolved with 1 death), and 882 in Hastings and Prince Edward counties (797 resolved with 8 deaths). The two most recent deaths were reported in Northumberland and in Peterborough on April 20.
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’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: 1,179 (increase of 5)* Total variants of concern cases: 409 (increase of 5) Active cases: 76 (decrease of 16) Close contacts: 247 (increase of 2) Deaths: 13 (no change) Resolved: 1,090 (increase of 21) Hospitalizations (total to date): 47 (no change)** ICU admissions (total to date): 8 (no change) Total tests completed: Over 49,550 (increase of 50) Outbreaks: Empress Gardens retirement home in Peterborough, Unidentified congregate living facility #3 in Peterborough, Unidentified workplace #5 in Peterborough, Trent Champlain Residence: West Towers in Peterborough (no change) Vaccine doses administered: 43,602 (increase of 2,454 as of April 22) Number of people fully vaccinated: 2,481 (increase of 54 as of April 22)
*The health unit is reporting 4 new cases in the last 24 hours. The total case count has increased by 5 because 1 case has been added to a previous day.
**As of April 26, Peterborough Regional Health Centre is reporting 13 patients currently hospitalized with COVID-19 (no change) and a total of 60 patients transferred from other areas as a result of a provincial directive (increase of 5).
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 for April 25 and April 26.
Confirmed positive: 1,598, including 704 in Kawartha Lakes, 796 in Northumberland, and 98 in Haliburton (increase of 27, including 13 in Kawartha Lakes, 12 in Northumberland, and 2 in Haliburton)* Cases with N501Y mutation: 339, including 103 in Kawartha Lakes, 219 in Northumberland, and 17 in Haliburton (increase of 9, including 1 in Kawartha Lakes, 5 in Northumberland, and 3 in Haliburton)** Active cases: 94, including 39 in Kawartha Lakes, 46 in Northumberland, and 9 in Haliburton (net decrease of 3) Probable cases: 3 in Northumberland (net decrease of 2) Hospitalizations (total to date): 57, including 33 in Kawartha Lakes, 21 in Northumberland, and 3 in Haliburton (no change)*** Deaths (including among probable cases): 70, including 56 in Kawartha Lakes, 13 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton (no change) Resolved: 1,447, including 622 in Kawartha Lakes, 737 in Northumberland, and 88 in Haliburton (increase of 30, including 9 in Kawartha Lakes, 20 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton) Tests completed: 177,843 (increase of 526) Vaccine doses administered: 64,953 (increase of 13,242 as of April 26) Number of people fully vaccinated: 3,548 (increase of 140 as of April 26) Outbreaks: Fenelon Court long-term care home in Fenelon Falls, Grafton Post Office in Grafton, Summersweet Custom Design & Build Inc. in Haliburton (decrease of 2)*****
*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.
***As of April 26, Ross Memorial Hospital in Lindsay reports 11 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 (increase of 2).
****Outbreaks at Grafton Public School in Grafton and Mariposa Elementary School in Oakwood have been declared resolved.
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: 882 (increase of 9) Confirmed variants of concern cases: 275 (increase of 10) Active cases: 76 (decrease of 3) Deaths: 8 (no change) Currently hospitalized: 17 (no change) Currently hospitalized and in ICU: 8 (increase of 2) Currently hospitalized and in ICU on ventilator: 4 (increase of 2) Resolved: 797 (increase of 10) Tests completed: 128,229 (increase of 285) Vaccine doses administered: 63,206 (increase of 333) Number of people fully vaccinated: 3,962 (increase of 2) Outbreaks: Unidentified congregate living facility in Belleville, Unidentified community outbreak in Belleville, Unidentified workplace in Prince Edward County, Unidentified workplace in Belleville (no change)
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Province of Ontario
Confirmed positive: 448,861 (increase of 3,510) COVID-19 variants of concern (VOC) cases: 54,436 of B.1.1.7 UK variant (increase of 2,038); 162 of B.1.351 South Africa variant (decrease of 2); 351 of P.1 Brazilian variant (increase of 84)* 7-day average of daily new cases: 3,917 (decrease of 135) Positivity rate: 10.9% (increase of 2.2%) Resolved: 400,340 (increase of 4,057), 89.2% of all cases (increase of 0.2%) Hospitalizations: 2,271 (increase of 145)** Hospitalizations in ICU: 877 (increase of 26) Hospitalizations in ICU on ventilator: 605 (increase of 9) Deaths: 7,935 (increase of 24) 7-day average of daily new deaths: 29 (increase of 1) Deaths of residents in long-term care homes: 3,914 (no change) Total tests completed: 13,911,631 (increase of 33,822) Tests under investigation: 17,369 (decrease of 8,272) Vaccination doses administered: 4,696,211 (increase of 69,308), 31.88% of Ontario’s population (increase of 0.47%)*** People fully vaccinated (two doses): 361,166 (increase of 812), 2.45% of Ontario’s population (no change)***
*While Ontario’s daily update is not yet reporting this information, Public Health Ontario confirmed on April 23 that 36 cases of the B.1.617 variant, a so-called “double mutation” variant first identified in India, have been detected in Ontario.
**As more than 10% of hospitals did not submit data for this report, the number of hospitalized patients may actually be higher.
***An estimated 70-90% of the population must be immunized to achieve herd immunity.
COVID-19 cases in Ontario from March 26 – April 25, 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 26 – April 25, 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 26 – April 25, 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 26 – April 25, 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 26 – April 25, 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)
Peterborough-area business owner Glenn Stonehouse (pictured with Misty) has donated $300,000 to Peterborough Humane Society's new animal care centre. (Supplied photo)
Local business owner Glenn Stonehouse has donated $300,000 to the fundraising campaign for the Peterborough Humane Society’s new animal care centre.
Stonehouse is the owner and president of One Fine Food in Peterborough and Wildfire Golf Club in Douro-Dummer on the shores of Stoney Lake.
“A couple of years back, I had the opportunity to be involved with the Peterborough Humane Society, learning about their goals, and development in animal wellness,” Stonehouse says. “Through these discussions, I got a close view of the inner workings of PHS and the great work the organization is doing in our community, which is why I was excited to be a part of this very important build.”
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Growing up on the family farm in Owen Sound, Stonehouse developed a deep love and respect for animals early on, according to a media release.
He always had dogs in his life, from working dogs on the farm to show dogs to companion animals. He came to the Peterborough area 25 years ago, when he bought a cottage on Stony Lake, and fell in love with the area.
“We’re simply blown away by Glenn’s generosity,” says Shawn Morey, executive director of the Peterborough Humane Society. “His commitment to the health and wellness of our community and the animals within it is going to make a huge impact on the future of animal wellness.”
Glenn Stonehouse is the owner and president of One Fine Food in Peterborough and (pictured) Wildfire Golf Club in Douro-Dummer on the shores of Stoney Lake. (Supplied photo)
In recognition of Stonehouse’s donation, the dog adoption program at the new centre will be named the Glenn Allan Stonehouse Dog Adoption Program.
While dogs are waiting to find their forever homes at the new centre, they will be housed in large kennels with indoor and outdoor access, providing dogs with more space and freedom. The kennels will be grouped in pods to reduce noise and stress for the dogs. Sliding guillotine doors will allow the kennels to double in size when required, such as when bonded dogs need to stay together.
Beyond improved kennel space, the dogs will also benefit from access to greater opportunities for enrichment and socialization.
A rendering of the dog kennels at the Peterborough Humane Society’s new animal care centre. In recognition of Stonehouse’s donation, the dog adoption program at the new centre will be named the Glenn Allan Stonehouse Dog Adoption Program. (Supplied photo)
The new animal care centre will include a high-volume and low-cost spay and neuter clinic, a cutting-edge dog rehabilitation centre, and an education and adoption centre.
To date, $7.5 million has been raised of the $10 million goal for the new animal centre.
In recognition of the 101st anniversary of through navigation on the Trent-Severn Waterway, Regional Tourism Organization 8 (RTO8) and Parks Canada have partnered to create the new 'Taste of the TSW' initiative, where local culinary providers are encouraged to showcase a product celebrating the waterway. Pictured are the Lock 18 Lager and Trailtown IPA from McGillicafey's Pub & Eatery at 13 Bridge Street North in Hastings. (Photo courtesy of RTO8)
Celebrating 101 years of navigation on the TSW
In 1920, all the Trent-Severn Waterway’s linkages — including over 40 locks, some 50km of human-made channel, and more than 130 dams — were completed, and the waterway became a fully navigable 386km-long system.
Regional Tourism Organization 8 (RTO8) is calling on all culinary providers in Kawarthas Northumberland to participate in the new ‘Taste of the TSW’ initiative, which celebrates food and community from across the region — home to 80 per cent of the Trent-Severn Waterway National Historic Site of Canada.
RTO8, which promotes regional tourism activity in the area branded as Kawarthas Northumberland, is partnering with Parks Canada to commemorate the 101st anniversary of through navigation on the waterway.
The Taste of the TSW culinary tourism campaign encourages all food and beverage producers and providers in the City of Kawartha Lakes, Peterborough City and County, and Northumberland County to showcase a culinary product — either by creating something new or by rebranding an existing product — that highlights and celebrates the Trent-Severn Waterway.
As well as commemorating the anniversary, the Taste of the TSW initiative will help promote local culinary providers to residents and — once it is safe to travel again — visitors to the region. Businesses will receive several benefits by participating in the initiative.
Parks Canada will provide local businesses participating in the new ‘Taste of the TSW’ initiative with this window cling. (Graphic courtesy of Parks Canada)
Parks Canada will provide a Taste of the TSW window cling for each participating business and will promote the campaign using the hashtag #TasteoftheTSW.
RTO8 will promote each participating business’s involvement in the initiative on the new Trent-Severn Trails Towns website at tswtrailtowns.ca, where each product will be listed.
Participating businesses may also be featured in social media posts and in digital ads, and RTO8 will provide businesses with access to logo assets and brand creative to use on own their social media channels.
The ‘Taste of the TSW’ culinary tourism initiative encourages food and beverage producers and providers in ‘Trail Towns’ along the Trent-Severn Waterway in the City of Kawartha Lakes, Peterborough City and County, and Northumberland County to to showcase a product celebrating the waterway. Pictured are Lock 18 Butter Tarts by Bridgewater Café & Pizza at 16 Bridge Street North in Hastings. (Photo courtesy of RTO8)
Businesses that wish to participate in Taste of The TSW must ensure their showcase product is made within the Kawarthas Northumberland region and is available for purchase in a public-facing location such as a store, restaurant, or pub.
They must also agree to display the #TasteoftheTSW window cling in view of visitors and to use the #TasteoftheTSW hashtag to promote their showcase product.
Here’s an update on COVID-19 cases in Ontario as well as in the greater Kawarthas region.
Ontario is reporting 3,947 new cases today, with Toronto reporting 1,136 cases and 10 other health units reporting triple-digit increases. The seven-day average of daily cases has decreased by 43 to 4,051.
There are also 2,538 more cases of the B.1.1.7 UK variant, 14 more cases of the B.1.351 South Africa variant, and 80 more cases of the P.1 Brazilian variant.
Hospitalizations have decreased for the third day in a row, but more than 10% of hospitals did not submit data for today’s report so the number of patients may actually be higher. The number of ICU admissions has reached a new record high, but the number of patients on ventilators has decreased slightly.
In the greater Kawarthas region, there are 21 new cases to report and an additional 27 cases resolved, with the number of active cases decreasing by 11 to 268. These numbers do not include Kawartha Lakes, Northumberland, and Haliburton as the Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit does not issue updates on Sundays.
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Most of the new cases reported today are in Toronto (1,136), Peel (901), York (406), Ottawa (209), Durham (207), Halton (153), Waterloo (118), Niagara (115), Simcoe Muskoka (111), Hamilton (109), and Middlesex-London (104).
There are double-digit increases reported today in Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph (73), Windsor-Essex (59), Southwestern (33), Eastern Ontario (31), Brant (31), Haldimand-Norfolk (16), Peterborough (14), Thunder Bay (13), Hastings Prince Edward (13), Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington (12), Northwestern (11), Renfrew (11), Sudbury (10), and Leeds, Grenville & Lanark (10), with smaller increases in Lambton (8), Grey Bruce (7), Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge (6), and Huron Perth (6).
The remaining 5 health units are reporting 5 or fewer new cases, with all of them reporting at least 1 case.
Of today’s new cases, 57% are among people 39 and younger, with the highest number of cases (1,510) among people ages 20-39 followed by 1,177 cases among people ages 40-59 and 748 cases among people 19 and under.
With 4,239 more cases resolved since yesterday, the percentage of resolved cases has increased by 0.2% to at 89.0% — the sixth straight day the percentage of resolved cases has increased. The average positivity rate across Ontario has increased by 0.9% to 8.7%, meaning that 87 out of every 1,000 tests performed were positive for COVID-19 on April 24.
Ontario is reporting 24 new COVID-19 deaths today, with 1 new death in a long-term care home. Ontario has averaged 28 new daily deaths over the past week, an increase of 1 from yesterday.
The number of hospitalizations has decreased by 151 to 2,126, but more than 10% of hospitals did not submit data for this report so the number of hospitalized patients may actually be higher. The number of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs has increased by 18 to a new record high of 851, but the number of patients with COVID-19 on ventilators has decreased by 4 to 596.
A total of 46,694 tests were completed yesterday, with the backlog of tests under investigation decreasing by 6,292 to 25,641.
A total of 4,626,903 doses of vaccine have now been administered, an increase of 99,535 from yesterday, with 360,354 people fully vaccinated with both doses of vaccine, an increase of 1,578 from yesterday.
The number of fully vaccinated people represents 2.45% of Ontario’s population, an increase of 0.01% from yesterday, with fully and partially vaccinated people representing 30.40% of the population, an increase of 0.68% 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 21 new cases to report, including 12 in Peterborough and 9 in Hastings Prince Edward. Updated numbers are unavailable for Kawartha Lakes, Northumberland, and Haliburton as the Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit does not issue reports on Sundays.
An outbreak at an unidentified workplace in Belleville, with 5 cases, was declared on April 23.
There are 6 new regional cases of variants of concern, including 4 in Peterborough and 2 in Hastings Prince Edward.
An additional 27 cases have been resolved, including 14 in Hastings Prince Edward and 13 in Peterborough.
There are currently 268 active cases in the greater Kawarthas region, a decrease of 11 from yesterday, including 92 in Peterborough, 79 in Hastings Prince Edward (16 in Quinte West, 39 in Belleville, 2 in Tyendinaga & Deseronto, 6 in Prince Edward County, 13 in Central Hastings, and 3 in North Hastings), 55 in Northumberland, 35 in Kawartha Lakes, and 7 in Haliburton.
Since the pandemic began in the greater Kawarthas region, there have been 1,174 confirmed positive cases in the Peterborough area (1,069 resolved with 13 deaths), 691 in the City of Kawartha Lakes (613 resolved with 56 deaths), 785 in Northumberland County (717 resolved with 13 deaths), 95 in Haliburton County (87 resolved with 1 death), and 874 in Hastings and Prince Edward counties (786 resolved with 8 deaths). The two most recent deaths were reported in Northumberland and in Peterborough on April 20.
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’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: 1,174 (increase of 9)* Total variants of concern cases: 404 (increase of 4) Active cases: 92 (decrease of 4) Close contacts: 245 (decrease of 6) Deaths: 13 (no change) Resolved: 1,069 (increase of 13) Hospitalizations (total to date): 47 (no change)** ICU admissions (total to date): 8 (no change) Total tests completed: Over 49,500 (increase of 500) Outbreaks: Empress Gardens retirement home in Peterborough, Unidentified congregate living facility #3 in Peterborough, Unidentified workplace #5 in Peterborough, Trent Champlain Residence: West Towers in Peterborough (no change) Vaccine doses administered: 43,602 (increase of 2,454 as of April 22) Number of people fully vaccinated: 2,481 (increase of 54 as of April 22)
*The health unit is reporting 12 new cases in the last 24 hours. The total case count has only increased by 9 because 3 cases have been removed from previous days.
**As of April 23, Peterborough Regional Health Centre is reporting 13 patients currently hospitalized with COVID-19 (no change) and a total of 55 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 April 24.
Confirmed positive: 1,571, including 691 in Kawartha Lakes, 786 in Northumberland, and 95 in Haliburton (increase of 7, including 4 in Kawartha Lakes and 3 in Northumberland)* Cases with N501Y mutation: 330, including 102 in Kawartha Lakes, 214 in Northumberland, and 14 in Haliburton (increase of 12, including 6 in Kawartha Lakes and 6 in Northumberland)** Active cases: 97, including 35 in Kawartha Lakes, 55 in Northumberland, and 7 in Haliburton (net decrease of 5) Probable cases: 5, including 2 in Kawartha Lakes, 2 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton (increase of 1 in Haliburton) Hospitalizations (total to date): 57, including 33 in Kawartha Lakes, 21 in Northumberland, and 3 in Haliburton (increase of 1 in Northumberland)*** Deaths (including among probable cases): 70, including 56 in Kawartha Lakes, 13 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton (no change) Resolved: 1,417, including 613 in Kawartha Lakes, 717 in Northumberland, and 87 in Haliburton (increase of 12, including 2 in Kawartha Lakes and 10 in Northumberland) Tests completed: 177,317 (increase of 565) Vaccine doses administered: 51,711 (increase of 13,296 as of April 19) Number of people fully vaccinated: 3,408 (increase of 361 as of April 19) Outbreaks: Fenelon Court long-term care home in Fenelon Falls, Grafton Public School in Grafton, Grafton Post Office in Grafton, Mariposa Elementary School in Oakwood, Summersweet Custom Design & Build Inc. in Haliburton (net decrease of 3)*****
*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.
***As of April 23, Ross Memorial Hospital in Lindsay reports 9 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 (increase of 2).
****A workplace outbreak at Summersweet Custom Design & Build Inc. in Haliburton was declared on April 23. Outbreaks at St. Mary Catholic Secondary School in Cobourg, Cobourg Collegiate Institute in Cobourg, North Hope Central Public School in Campbellcroft, and St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Secondary School in Lindsay have been resolved.
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: 874 (increase of 9) Confirmed variants of concern cases: 264 (increase of 2) Active cases: 79 (decrease of 7) Deaths: 8 (no change) Currently hospitalized: 17 (no change) Currently hospitalized and in ICU: 6 (no change) Currently hospitalized and in ICU on ventilator: 2 (no change) Resolved: 786 (increase of 14) Tests completed: 127,944 (increase of 3,066) Vaccine doses administered: 62,873 (increase of 615) Number of people fully vaccinated: 3,960 (increase of 93) Outbreaks: Unidentified congregate living facility in Belleville, Unidentified community outbreak in Belleville, Unidentified workplace in Prince Edward County, Unidentified workplace in Belleville (increase of 1)*
*An outbreak at an unidentified workplace in Belleville, with 5 cases, was declared on April 23.
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Province of Ontario
Confirmed positive: 445,351 (increase of 3,947) COVID-19 variants of concern (VOC) cases: 52,398 of B.1.1.7 UK variant (increase of 2,538); 164 of B.1.351 South Africa variant (increase of 14); 267 of P.1 Brazilian variant (increase of 80)* 7-day average of daily new cases: 4,051 (decrease of 43) Positivity rate: 8.7% (increase of 0.9%) Resolved: 396,283 (increase of 4,239), 89.0% of all cases (increase of 0.2%) Hospitalizations: 2,126 (decrease of 151)** Hospitalizations in ICU: 851 (increase of 18) Hospitalizations in ICU on ventilator: 596 (decrease of 4) Deaths: 7,911 (increase of 24) 7-day average of daily new deaths: 28 (increase of 1) Deaths of residents in long-term care homes: 3,914 (increase of 1) Total tests completed: 13,877,809 (increase of 46,694) Tests under investigation: 25,641 (decrease of 6,292) Vaccination doses administered: 4,626,903 (increase of 99,535), 31.40% of Ontario’s population (increase of 0.68%)*** People fully vaccinated (two doses): 360,354 (increase of 1,578), 2.45% of Ontario’s population (increase of 0.01%)***
*While Ontario’s daily update is not yet reporting this information, Public Health Ontario confirmed on April 23 that 36 cases of the B.1.617 variant, a so-called “double mutation” variant first identified in India, have been detected in Ontario.
**As more than 10% of hospitals did not submit data for this report, the number of hospitalized patients may actually be higher.
***An estimated 70-90% of the population must be immunized to achieve herd immunity.
COVID-19 cases in Ontario from March 25 – April 24, 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 25 – April 24, 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 25 – April 24, 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 25 – April 24, 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 25 – April 24, 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)
Here’s an update on COVID-19 cases in Ontario as well as in the greater Kawarthas region.
Ontario is reporting 4,094 new cases today, with more than 1,000 cases in Toronto and in Peel (for the second day in a row) and 7 other health units reporting triple-digit increases. The seven-day average of daily cases has decreased by 39 to 4,094.
Public Health Ontario has confirmed 36 cases of the B.1.617 variant, first identified in India, have been detected in the province.
“I am extremely concerned about the threat of this latest variant,” said Premier Doug Ford in a statement on Saturday, pleading with the federal government to prohibit all non-essential travel to Canada immediately. “The images we are seeing from other parts of the world right now are heartbreaking. These deadly new variants are causing devastation in India and other countries. We can’t let that happen here.”
There are also 2,955 more cases of the B.1.1.7 UK variant, 16 more cases of the B.1.351 South Africa variant, and 32 more cases of the P.1 Brazilian variant.
Hospitalizations have decreased slightly for the second day in a row, but ICU admissions and patients on ventilators have increased to new record highs. More than 4.5 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine have now been administered in Ontario, with 30% of the population now having received at least one dose; an estimated 70-90% of the population must be immunized to achieve herd immunity.
In the greater Kawarthas region, there are 35 new cases to report and an additional 33 cases resolved, with the number of active cases increasing by 2 to 279.
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Most of the new cases reported today are in Toronto (1,191), Peel (1,014), York (406), Niagara (226), Durham (199), Ottawa (158), Hamilton (133), Waterloo (111), and Halton (109).
There are double-digit increases reported today in Middlesex-London (96), Simcoe Muskoka (86), Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph (78), Windsor-Essex (45), Eastern Ontario (32), Brant (32), Haldimand-Norfolk (21), Southwestern (16), Porcupine (15), Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge (14), Grey Bruce (14), Leeds, Grenville & Lanark (12), and Lambton (12), with smaller increases in Northwestern (9), Thunder Bay (9), Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington (9), Peterborough (8), Huron Perth (7), Hastings Prince Edward (6).
The remaining 6 health units are reporting 5 or fewer new cases, with all of them reporting at least 1 case.
Of today’s new cases, 56% are among people 39 and younger, with the highest number of cases (1,594) among people ages 20-39 followed by 1,198 cases among people ages 40-59 and 707 cases among people 19 and under.
With 4,332 more cases resolved since yesterday, the percentage of resolved cases has increased by 0.1% to at 88.8% — the fifth day in a row of an increase in resolved cases. The average positivity rate across Ontario has decreased by 1.0% to 7.8%, meaning that 78 out of every 1,000 tests performed were positive for COVID-19 on April 23.
Ontario is reporting 24 new COVID-19 deaths today, with no new deaths in long-term care homes. Ontario has averaged 27 new daily deaths over the past week, a decrease of 1 from yesterday.
The number of hospitalizations has decreased by 10 to 2,277, but the number of patients with COVID-19 in ICUs has increased by 15 to 833 and the number of patients with COVID-19 on ventilators has increased by 7 to 600.
A total of 52,160 tests were completed yesterday, with the backlog of tests under investigation increasing by 570 to 31,933.
A total of 4,527,368 doses of vaccine have now been administered, an increase of 126,694 from yesterday, with 358,776 people fully vaccinated with both doses of vaccine, an increase of 3,568 from yesterday.
The number of fully vaccinated people represents 2.44% of Ontario’s population, an increase of 0.03% from yesterday, with fully and partially vaccinated people representing 30.73% of the population, an increase of 0.86% 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 35 new cases to report, including 18 in Hastings Prince Edward, 10 in Peterborough, 4 in Kawartha Lakes, and 3 in Northumberland. There are no new cases in Haliburton.
A workplace outbreak at Summersweet Custom Design & Build Inc. in Haliburton was declared on April 23.
There are 4 new hospitalizations and 1 new ICU admission in Hastings Prince Edward, and 1 new hospitalization in Northumberland.
There are 17 new regional cases of variants of concern, including 6 in Kawartha Lakes, 6 in Northumberland, 4 in Peterborough, and 1 in Hastings Prince Edward.
An additional 33 cases have been resolved, including 12 in Hastings Prince Edward, 10 in Northumberland, 9 in Peterborough, and 2 in Kawartha Lakes. Outbreaks at an unidentified workplace in Peterborough, St. Mary Catholic Secondary School in Cobourg, Cobourg Collegiate Institute in Cobourg, North Hope Central Public School in Campbellcroft, and St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Secondary School in Lindsay have been declared resolved.
There are currently 279 active cases in the greater Kawarthas region, an increase of 2 from yesterday, including 96 in Peterborough, 86 in Hastings Prince Edward (15 in Quinte West, 41 in Belleville, 3 in Tyendinaga & Deseronto, 6 in Prince Edward County, 17 in Central Hastings, and 4 in North Hastings), 55 in Northumberland, 35 in Kawartha Lakes, and 7 in Haliburton.
Since the pandemic began in the greater Kawarthas region, there have been 1,165 confirmed positive cases in the Peterborough area (1,056 resolved with 13 deaths), 691 in the City of Kawartha Lakes (613 resolved with 56 deaths), 785 in Northumberland County (717 resolved with 13 deaths), 95 in Haliburton County (87 resolved with 1 death), and 866 in Hastings and Prince Edward counties (771 resolved with 8 deaths). The two most recent deaths were reported in Northumberland and in Peterborough on April 20.
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’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: 1,165 (increase of 12)* Total variants of concern cases: 400 (increase of 4) Active cases: 96 (increase of 3) Close contacts: 251 (decrease of 44) Deaths: 13 (no change) Resolved: 1,056 (increase of 9) Hospitalizations (total to date): 47 (no change)** ICU admissions (total to date): 8 (no change) Total tests completed: Over 49,000 (increase of 250) Outbreaks: Empress Gardens retirement home in Peterborough, Unidentified congregate living facility #3 in Peterborough, Unidentified workplace #5 in Peterborough, Trent Champlain Residence: West Towers in Peterborough (decrease of 1)*** Vaccine doses administered: 43,602 (increase of 2,454 as of April 22) Number of people fully vaccinated: 2,481 (increase of 54 as of April 22)
*The health unit is reporting 10 new cases in the last 24 hours. The total case count has increased by 2 because 2 cases have been added from previous days.
**As of April 23, Peterborough Regional Health Centre is reporting 13 patients currently hospitalized with COVID-19 (no change) and a total of 55 patients transferred from other areas as a result of a provincial directive (no change).
***An outbreak at unidentified workplace #6 in Peterborough was declared resolved on April 24.
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: 1,571, including 691 in Kawartha Lakes, 786 in Northumberland, and 95 in Haliburton (increase of 7, including 4 in Kawartha Lakes and 3 in Northumberland)* Cases with N501Y mutation: 330, including 102 in Kawartha Lakes, 214 in Northumberland, and 14 in Haliburton (increase of 12, including 6 in Kawartha Lakes and 6 in Northumberland)** Active cases: 97, including 35 in Kawartha Lakes, 55 in Northumberland, and 7 in Haliburton (net decrease of 5) Probable cases: 5, including 2 in Kawartha Lakes, 2 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton (increase of 1 in Haliburton) Hospitalizations (total to date): 57, including 33 in Kawartha Lakes, 21 in Northumberland, and 3 in Haliburton (increase of 1 in Northumberland)*** Deaths (including among probable cases): 70, including 56 in Kawartha Lakes, 13 in Northumberland, and 1 in Haliburton (no change) Resolved: 1,417, including 613 in Kawartha Lakes, 717 in Northumberland, and 87 in Haliburton (increase of 12, including 2 in Kawartha Lakes and 10 in Northumberland) Tests completed: 177,317 (increase of 565) Vaccine doses administered: 51,711 (increase of 13,296 as of April 19) Number of people fully vaccinated: 3,408 (increase of 361 as of April 19) Outbreaks: Fenelon Court long-term care home in Fenelon Falls, Grafton Public School in Grafton, Grafton Post Office in Grafton, Mariposa Elementary School in Oakwood, Summersweet Custom Design & Build Inc. in Haliburton (net decrease of 3)*****
*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.
***As of April 23, Ross Memorial Hospital in Lindsay reports 9 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 (increase of 2).
****A workplace outbreak at Summersweet Custom Design & Build Inc. in Haliburton was declared on April 23. Outbreaks at St. Mary Catholic Secondary School in Cobourg, Cobourg Collegiate Institute in Cobourg, North Hope Central Public School in Campbellcroft, and St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Secondary School in Lindsay have been resolved.
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: 866 (increase of 18) Confirmed variants of concern cases: 261 (increase of 1) Active cases: 86 (increase of 4) Deaths: 8 (no change) Currently hospitalized: 17 (increase of 4) Currently hospitalized and in ICU: 6 (increase of 1) Currently hospitalized and in ICU on ventilator: 2 (no change) Resolved: 771 (increase of 12) Tests completed: 124,878 (no change) Vaccine doses administered: 62,258 (increase of 1,112) Number of people fully vaccinated: 3,867 (increase of 2) Outbreaks: Unidentified congregate living facility in Belleville, Unidentified community outbreak in Belleville, Unidentified workplace in Prince Edward County (no change)
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Province of Ontario
Confirmed positive: 441,404 (increase of 4,094) COVID-19 variants of concern (VOC) cases: 49,860 of B.1.1.7 UK variant (increase of 2,955); 150 of B.1.351 South Africa variant (increase of 16); 267 of P.1 Brazilian variant (increase of 43)** 7-day average of daily new cases: 4,094 (decrease of 38) Positivity rate: 7.8% (decrease of 1.0%) Resolved: 392,044 (increase of 4,332), 88.8% of all cases (increase of 0.1%) Hospitalizations: 2,277 (decrease of 10) Hospitalizations in ICU: 833 (increase of 15) Hospitalizations in ICU on ventilator: 600 (increase of 7) Deaths: 7,887 (increase of 24) 7-day average of daily new deaths: 27 (decrease of 1) Deaths of residents in long-term care homes: 3,913 (no change) Total tests completed: 13,831,115 (increase of 52,160) Tests under investigation: 31,933 (increase of 570) Vaccination doses administered: 4,527,368 (increase of 126,694), 30.73% of Ontario’s population (increase of 0.86%)** People fully vaccinated (two doses): 358,776 (increase of 3,568), 2.44% of Ontario’s population (increase of 0.03%)**
*While Ontario’s daily update is not yet reporting this information, Public Health Ontario has confirmed 36 cases of the B.1.617 variant, a so-called “double mutation” variant first identified in India, have been detected in Ontario.
**An estimated 70-90% of the population must be immunized to achieve herd immunity.
COVID-19 cases in Ontario from March 24 – April 23, 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 24 – April 23, 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 24 – April 23, 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 24 – April 23, 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 24 – April 23, 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)
A scene from Peterborough filmmaker Keith Smith's 2019 short "The Photo", inspired by a real-life encounter Smith had 20 years ago. The 12-minute film, which was shot at the Peterborough Lift Lock, has garnered numerous accolades and award nominations at international film festivals in 2021. The film stars Peterborough community theatre actors Glen Walker and Rhonda Brewster. (Screenshot)
A short film called “The Photo” by Peterborough-based filmmaker R. Keith Smith — shot at the Peterborough Lift Lock in 2019 — has recently been making waves on the international film festival circuit.
Written and directed by Smith and produced and edited by Christian Moes, “The Photo” has now been shown at more than 40 international film festivals. It stars Peterborough community theatre actors Glen Walker, a veteran of the Peterborough Theatre Guild and a Pathway of Fame inductee, and Rhonda Brewster.
The 12-minute film has garnered numerous accolades and award nominations in 2021, including winner at the Cairo Indie Short Festival, finalist at both the Paris International Short Festival and the Vancouver Independent Film Festival, and a best actress nomination for Brewster at both the San Francisco Indie Short Film Festival and the Vienna Indie Short Film Festival.
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“The Photo” details a chance encounter between a travelling photographer (Brewster) and an elderly gentleman (Walker). Their endearing chat ends with a photographic exchange, making present that which is absent from the photo.
“The Photo” is based on a true story, one that has stayed with Smith for the better part of 20 years.
On a family vacation to Banff National Park, Smith was photographing his wife and children on the picturesque landscape. An older gentleman approached him and offered to photograph Smith and his family together. Once the photo had been taken, the gentleman asked if Smith would return the gesture by photographing him.
“The Photo” was written and directed by Peterborough filmmaker R. Keith Smith. (Photo courtesy of R. Kevin Smith)
“He handed me his old Brownie camera — one of those old box cameras — and he was directing me quite meticulously in terms of positioning,” Smith recalls.
“He was very precise about where he ought to stand and where I ought to stand,” he laughs.
“I mentioned to him that the positioning made for a lot of empty space in the frame, and he said ‘That’s where my wife stands.’ But he was there all alone. He then told me that his wife had passed away. Every year during their 65-year marriage, they would come to that spot — the spot where they first met — and have their photo taken on their anniversary.”
“This was the first year that his wife was not there,” recalls a visibly moved Smith. “I still get choked up every time I think about it, and that was close to 20 years ago.”
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Smith felt compelled to share the story with the world and film, he decided, was the perfect medium to do so.
Smith grew up immersed in the magic of film, with most of his immediate and extended family prolific photographers and filmmakers.
“My dad was an avid photographer,” Smith explains. “We had a darkroom in the basement. I grew up surrounded by people in the film and television industries.”
In fact, some of Smith’s earliest childhood memories are of making films and even, on occasion, helping the grown-ups get that perfect shot.
R. Keith Smith’s 2019 short “The Photo” has received several honours at international film festivals in 2021. (Poster detail courtesy of Chorister Productions)
One memory, in particular, sticks out for Smith as his introduction to filmmaking.
“Don, a family friend, was a documentarian detailing most of the rail systems within Ontario,” Smith recalls. “It was the last run of this steam engine [train] that was being parked down at the CNE. So my was dad was driving this Chev, which was not designed to go at that speed, down Bayview along the tracks. And Don was hanging his arse out the window trying to film this thing.”
“And me, I was like five years old, I was hanging on to him as tight as I could,” laughs Smith.
As a filmmaker, Smith is able to combine his experience with business systems and engineering with his capacity for creative writing and theatrical expertise. Film, for Smith, is the perfect marriage of technology and storytelling.
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“It was the technical side of film that first fascinated me — I love that techie stuff — but it isn’t just about the machines,” he says.
“I’ll always remember Norman Jewison’s Oscar acceptance speech,” Smith says. “He summarized film so nicely. He said, ‘Tell a story. At the heart of it, film isn’t about technique, it’s about that human interaction of telling a story from one person to another.’ That always struck me.”
In telling a story based on truth, Smith’s short film “The Photo” honours that story with every retelling — it gives the story a new and lasting life.
VIDEO: “The Photo” by R. Keith Smith
“I’m just honouring that man,” Smith says, referring to the older gentleman he and his family encountered almost 20 years ago. “And honouring life. Life is life is worth living — it’s a series of events that will take you in so many different directions.”
Smith attributes the positive response and international success of “The Photo” to the universality of the film’s themes.
“It’s incredibly humbling to think that I actually touched on those universalities of life,” he says. “Bottom line, I’m humbled by the fact that I have this amalgam of a story and incredible people around me to be able to tell that story.”
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