Fifteen Ontario public schools are now closed due to COVID-19 outbreaks
Fifteen of Ontario’s public schools are now closed due to COVID-19 spread – the highest number of school closures seen in the province to date this year, with the number of closures now exceeding what occurred at this point in the 2020 school year.
The Ministry of Education says 170 new cases of COVID-19 were detected in the past 24 hours, including 154 in students, 13 in staff and three in people whose association to school was not disclosed.
Five additional schools closed in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of schools closed to 15.
On this date last year, only four of the province’s 4,844 publicly funded schools were closed due to COVID-19 outbreaks.
The school system did not see double-digit school closure numbers in the 2020 school year until Dec. 7 and did not exceed 15 closures until Dec. 14.
Nearly 14 per cent of all Ontario schools are now dealing with at least one active case of COVID-19.
There are now 1,397 active cases in public schools, up more than 22 per cent from one week ago.
The increase in Ontario’s active caseload over the same time period was only 14 per cent, suggesting that schools are increasingly being tied to higher case counts compared to the broader community.
The first few dozen children under the age of 12 received pediatric doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine from Tuesday to Wednesday, with more than 90,000 appointments for children booked across Ontario over the next few weeks.
Education Minister Stephen Lecce said the recent increases in COVID-19 transmission tied to schools is manageable, saying “eight in nine” elementary schools in the province do not have an active case of COVID-19.
“We’re taking nothing for granted, we’ve stepped up the testing by design, we know that winter months can mean higher cases, and we are being very cautious on the way forward,” he said, referring to recent decisions to make in-school assemblies virtual and adjusting high school lunch timing as examples of his prudence.
Schools across the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area reported 672 active cases of COVID-19 among students and staff on Wednesday, 20 more than Tuesday and 45 more than one week ago.
At least 128 class cohorts in the GTHA are at home self isolating and three schools – Grenoble Public School in Toronto’s Flemingdon Park area, Micheline-Saint-Cyr Elementary School in Etobicoke, and Nativity of Our Lord Catholic School in Etobicoke – are closed.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Live updates: What star witness in Trump hush money case has said on the stand so far
The star prosecution witness in Donald Trump's hush money trial took the stand Monday with testimony that could help shape the outcome of the first criminal case against an American president.
Police release 3D images of young child found in an Ontario river two years ago
Police have released a three-dimensional image of a young child whose remains were discovered in the Grand River in Dunnville, Ont. almost two years ago.
Kamala Harris drops F-bomb during White House live-stream
U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris used a profanity on Monday while offering advice to young Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders about how to break through barriers.
Wildfire smoke drifts across Canada, over parts of U.S., prompting air quality advisories
Air quality advisories are in effect across Western Canada as smoky conditions plague some areas, according to the latest forecasts. Here's where.
When you have a moment's notice to evacuate, what do you take?
Knowing what to have at home, or take with you for an evacuation, can be useful and even life-saving.
'A great victory for the industry': Taxi drivers celebrate ruling that found City of Ottawa negligent in allowing Uber to operate
An Ontario Superior Court judge has ruled that the City of Ottawa was negligent in its enforcement of the city's taxi bylaw when it allowed Uber to begin operating in 2014, harming the city's established taxi industry.
'Judge Judy' Sheindlin sues for defamation over National Enquirer, InTouch Weekly stories
'Judge Judy' Sheindlin sued the parent company of the National Enquirer and InTouch Weekly on Monday for a story that she said falsely claimed that she was trying to help the Menendez brothers get a retrial after they were convicted of murdering their parents.
Western University researchers unlock potential 'cure' for ALS
New research out of London, Ont.’s Western University is shedding light on a potential cure for ALS, in which the targeting of the interaction between two proteins can halt or fully reverse the disease’s progression.
New York City FC coach repeats denial of allegations he punched a Toronto FC player
New York City FC coach Nick Cushing has repeated his denial of allegations that he punched a Toronto FC player, saying he is shocked and upset at the claim.