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Ontario Government Announces New Restrictions and Shutdown Extension
/Ontario Premier Doug Ford and his cabinet have placed tighter restrictions including a two-week shutdown extension to combat the third wave of COVID-19 announced on Friday.
The decision came after COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and intensive care unit occupancies are at their highest according to Christine Elliott, deputy premier and minister of health.
The stay-at-home order now totalling six weeks will come with tighter restrictions and are effective April 17, at 12:01 a.m.
Limiting mobility, enforcing the rules and getting vaccines are the three ways the curve will be flattened according to Ford.
Doug Ford announced the stay-at-home shutdown at April 1 which originally scheduled for four weeks. Screenshot.
The following restrictions are as follows:
Outdoor gatherings are limited to your household only, those who live alone can meet with one other household
Provincial border restriction checkpoints are placed on Manitoba and Quebec with the exception of work, medical care or transportations
International and air travel are restricted
All non-essential workplaces and construction will be closed
All outdoor recreational activities such as golf courses, soccer fields, basketball courts and playgrounds are closed
Essential retailers permitted for in-store shopping are capped at a 25 per cent capacity
Religious services, weddings and funerals have a 10-person limit indoors or outdoors
Drive-in services are permitted
Police and by-law officers will enforce public health measures during the shutdown. Police can ask for your place of residence and why you are not there. You can receive a ticket of $750 for not complying as it is breaking the law according to Sylvia Jones, solicitor general.
Vaccine supplies will increase for hotspots by 25 per cent according to Ford.
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Schools Move to Virtual Learning After Record-Breaking COVID-19 Numbers
/Ontario Premier Doug Ford has declared that all elementary and secondary schools will move to an online format after the April break indefinitely after record-breaking COVID-19 cases and ICU numbers on Monday.
The announcement was made as a preventative measure according to Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education.
“Today’s announcement is about prevention and sadly necessary precaution as we tackle the third wave of COVID-19,” he said.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford received his COVID-19 vaccine on Friday. Screenshot.
Students with special education needs who are unable to learn virtually will have continued in-person learning.
Child care services for non-school-aged children will remain open and all school activities and activities will be closed accord to Ford.
Free emergency child care will be provided for school-aged children of healthcare and frontline workers. The Government of Ontario is working on a child care plan for parents who cannot work remotely.
Ford encourages that anyone who is eligible to get the vaccine to book an appointment as soon as possible.
Any eligible person who wants to book a vaccine appointment can visit the Government of Ontario website or call 1-888-999-6488.
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Peterborough Public Health Launches Campaign for COVID-19 Vaccine Eligibility
/Together with its municipal partners the City and County of Peterborough, Peterborough Public Health launched its “Notify Me” campaign to make it easier for residents to find out when they can receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
All residents need to do is visit Peterborough Public Health’s “Notify Me” site to sign up with their email address and indicate which group(s) they want to be notified about.
When local clinics and healthcare providers are ready to serve that group in the coming weeks, Peterborough Public Health will send an email to those on the mailing list explaining how to book a vaccination appointment.
No personal information will be collected. All email addresses gathered through the form will be stored securely until use. They will be deleted after the final notification is issued once Phase 3 vaccinations begin.
“With a rapidly changing vaccine distribution plan and other Ontario regions opening up eligibility for different groups at different times, it can be confusing to know when it’s your turn to book an appointment,” said Brittany Cadence, Communications Manager with Peterborough Public Health. “By simply providing us with your email address, we hope to provide peace of mind.”
Photo courtesy of
Peterborough Public Health is only able to notify people by email and encourages those without an email address to ask a loved one with an email address to sign up on their behalf.
As a reminder, you are not signing up to receive the vaccine. You must also be in the eligible population to sign up to receive the vaccine. More information about eligibility will be available on the Peterborough Public Health vaccine webpage.
To sign up to receive a notification when COVID-19 vaccine eligibility opens up to a specific group, please visit Peterborough Public Health’s “Notify Me” link.
To learn more about Ontario’s Vaccination plan, you can click here for more information.
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Ontario Government Declares State of Emergency With Stay-At-Home Order Restrictions
/Ontario Premier Doug Ford has declared a state of emergency including a province-wide stay-at-home order in a live stream press conference in Toronto at Queen’s Park on Wednesday.
The four-week order will take place at 12:01 a.m. on Thursday after top public health officials and Ottawa urged the province to do more to contain the COVID-19 variants.
The same officials reported a surge in patient overflow in hospitals and ICUs in the last week according to Ford.
During the order, Ontario plans to roll out mobile clinics to vaccine those aged 18+ who need it the most such as workers in the high-risk locations.
“These next four weeks are absolutely critical,” said Ford. “We’ve come so far already and we just need to stick together a little longer. because hope is on the horizon.”
Ontario Premier Doug Ford (pictured) announced an “emergency brake” shutdown on Apr. 1. Over 2.7 million vaccines have been administered in Ontario since the press conference. Screenshot.
The following are the restrictions the Government of Ontario is putting into place in addition to the “emergency brake” shutdown on Thursday:
Grocers and pharmacies are allowed for indoor shopping
Garden centers can stay open
Big box and discount store retailers can sell essential items such as food, pet care, medicine, cleaning supplies and personal items
All other items and are restricted to curbside pickup or delivery
If the store sells the non-essential items in addition to food and pharmaceutical items, the sections must be blocked off
Non-essential retailers are limited to curbside pickup and delivery from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Residential evictions will be suspended
Shopping malls are restricted to specific purposes such as access to designated pickup locations via appointment
Any eligible person who wants to book a vaccine appointment can visit the Government of Ontario website or call 1-888-999-6488.
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Ontario Premier Doug Ford Announced Four-Week Province-Wide "Emergency Brake"
/Ontario will go into at least a four-week, province-wide shutdown on Saturday as Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced an “emergency brake” to help reduce the spread of COVID-19 variants.
The announcement was made Thursday afternoon in a live stream at Queen’s Park in Toronto.
“This is a new pandemic,” said Ford. “We’re now fighting a new enemy. The new variants are far more dangerous than before. They spread faster and they do more harm than the virus we were fighting last year.”
The shutdown will take effect on Saturday, Apr. 3 at 12:01 a.m.
According to the Government of Ontario, they are urging Ontario to take these safety measures:
You should:
Stay home as much as possible
Limit close contact to your household (the people you live with) and stay at least two metres apart from everyone else
Limit trips outside your home to necessities, such as:
Getting food or medication
Going to medical appointments
Supporting vulnerable community members
Child care
Getting exercise or walking pets
Always:
Stay home if you have symptoms, even if they are mild
Stay two metres apart from people you don’t live with
Wear a mask or face covering in indoor public spaces or any time physical distancing is not possible
Christine Elliott, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health outlines the restrictions of the “emergency brake.”
Prohibiting indoor organized public events and social gatherings but outdoor gatherings are limited to a five-person maximum
Gatherings with the same household members or one-household gatherings can meet with one other solo household member
A 50 per cent capacity limit for, grocers, convenience stores, indoor farmers' markets, pharmacies and other stores that primarily sell food
A 25 per cent limit for all other retailers including big box stores
No personal care services.
No indoor or outdoor dining however take out, delivery and drive-thru options are permitted
No indoor or outdoor sports, sports facilities and recreational fitness, with very limited exceptions
Day camps are not permitted
Limiting capacity at funerals, weddings and religious services to 15 per cent occupancy per room indoors and to those who can social distance two metres outdoors. Social gatherings affiliated with these services such as receptions, which are not permitted indoors and are limited to five people outdoors are not included.
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New AstraZeneca Vaccine Headed to Peterborough Pharmacies
/The AztraZeneca vaccine is coming to three Peterborough pharmacies for anyone 60 or older according to Dr. Rosana Salvaterra, Medical Officer of Health at a virtual meeting on Wednesday evening.
Stock Photo.
It is not confirmed what pharmacies will carry the vaccine and when.
Peterborough has already received 4,500 AstraZeneca vaccines for people aged 60 to 64 in a pilot program at doctors’ offices according to Salvaterra.
The vaccine was previously approved for anyone 18 and older according to Health Canada. The National Advisory Committee on Immunization has advised that anyone 55 or older should be the only recipients to be administered the vaccine.
This was due to cases in Europe where younger people had blood clots with low platelets after getting the AstraZeneca vaccine.
“To date, none of these events have been reported in Canada,” said Supriya Sharma, Health Canada chief medical adviser in an online stream. “Health Canada will assess this information when it’s received and will determine when additional regulatory actions are necessary.
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COVID-19 Long Hauler on the Road to Recovery After Vaccination
/After being tested for COVID-19 in April 2020, “long hauler” Darryl Porter is recovering from the side effects after getting vaccinated last week Wednesday.
“Long Hauler” refers to a person who is free from the COVID-19 virus to still have lingering side effects.
Porter suffered from fatigue since being free of COVID-19 in August. After a week of his vaccination, he got tired the following day and slept for roughly 15 hours. He noticed that he gradually is having more energy after his long nap.
“Every day is getting a little bit better,” said Porter. “You take a few steps forward, maybe a step back but you’re gaining more steps than you’re losing.”
Darryl Porter being administered his first of two shots of the COVID-19 vaccine. Photo Courtesy of Darryl Porter.
“Darryl couldn’t even walk down the street,” remarked Susan Dunkley, Porter’s wife. “He’s walking three to four kilometres a day but he’s not quite ready to run a marathon.”
Porter believes he contracted the virus on Mar. 19, 2020 as one of the earliest cases for Peterborough but tested negative from Peterborough Public Health. He was officially diagnosed positive in mid-April of 2020 and is unsure where he contracted COVID-19.
“I had the sweats, a fever, a horrible cough, the shakes, aches and pains,” said Porter. “All my joints were aching and really bad stomach cramps. Not so much a sore throat. I had sinus stuff which I’m still dealing with as mine was more sinus.”
Porter was quarantined to his attic while he tested positive. Photo Courtesy of Darryl Porter.
Porter was tested a number of times and received his first negative in August. He tested positive again on the following test but got back-to-back negatives afterwards. Porter remained cautious and wanted to ensure he was free from the virus.
“I got tested a number of times and I believe it was August when I finally got my first negative,” said Porter.” “I was pretty excited. I went back in to get tested and I wanted to make sure that there were no faults.”
Porter warns the community that life does not immediately return to normal after the vaccination.
“It can’t be that way until it’s fully under control,” he said. “There’s a lot of people who are not believers in getting the shot and I don’t understand that. I will always have my mask on and I will kind of keep my distance.”
Porter and Dunkley are planning to get their second vaccination when it is ready to be administered to the public.
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First COVID-19 Case Reported in Local Shelter System
/A positive COVID-19 case associated with the Brock Mission Shelter has been reported by Peterborough Public Health and the City of Peterborough on Wednesday.
Photo courtesy of Otonabee Conservation
The individual — who is not being identified — was already self-isolating away from the shelter when they were tested positive according to the press release.
They have been self-isolating in a motel since the virus’s discovery according to the City of Peterborough.
The test could not detect if it was a COVID-19 variant strain as it was indicated as “low level detected”.
“We are grateful for the efforts of the shelter staff who have been following public health protocols for the last year, screening individuals and monitoring for symptoms to direct people to isolation for testing,“ said Dr. Rosana Salvaterra, Medical Officer of Health. “Their dedication to the safety of people who use the emergency shelters was key in this situation.”
This is the only positive case in all Peterborough emergency shelters to date. Shelters are already increasing health measures such as deeper cleaning and extra disinfectant on common surfaces.
Surveillance testing began immediately at the Brock Mission with help of Peterborough Paramedics.
“We’re working together to help protect the most vulnerable in our community,“ said Diane Therrien, Peterborough mayor. “Shelter staff and Public Health quickly responded to this situation to assist this individual and to take the necessary follow-up steps to keep residents and staff safe.”
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First COVID-19 Death Reported from Severn Court Outbreak
/A man in his 30s has died from the Severn Court COVID-19 outbreak according to a press release by Peterborough Public Health (PPH) on Tuesday — the youngest person to die locally from COVID-19.
The man — who has yet to be identified — lived at the off-campus residence but did not attend the party according to PPH. He was diagnosed with a COVID-19 variant and was hospitalized outside the region last week before he died.
photo via Severn Court Residence Facebook page
