Ontario reports more than 500 new COVID-19 cases for fourth straight day
Ontario health officials are reporting just over 500 new cases of COVID-19 for the fourth straight day.
Health officials confirmed 530 new cases of the novel coronavirus on Sunday after officials reported 590 on Thursday, 574 on Friday and 502 on Saturday.
Ontario’s rolling seven-day average now stands at 514, down from 791 at this point last week.
With 20,731 tests processed in the past 24 hours, the Ministry of Health says the positivity rate in the province rose from 2.1 on Saturday to 2.6 per cent on Sunday.
The province also reported that seven more people have died due to COVID-19 in the previous 24-hour period, bringing the total number of deaths to 8,957.
There are currently 373 people in hospital due to the disease, but the province has said that number may be an underestimate as not all hospitals reported their data this past weekend. At least 426 patients are in intensive care and 273 are breathing with the assistance of a ventilator.
The province deemed 763 more cases of the disease to be resolved as of Sunday, bringing Ontario’s number of recovered patients up to 525,125.
Sunday’s report brings the total number of lab-confirmed cases in Ontario to 539,683, including deaths and recoveries.
WHERE ARE THE COVID-19 CASES IN ONTARIO
Many of the new cases reported are concentrated in hot spot regions in the Greater Toronto Area. Officials reported 102 new cases in Toronto, 81 new cases in Peel Region, 21 new cases in Durham Region and 14 new cases in York Region.
The province confirmed an additional 785 new cases of B.1.1.7 (U.K. variant) in Ontario on Sunday. The total case count for the strain now stands at 139,482.
Officials identified three new cases of B.1.351 (South African variant), bringing the total case count in the province to 1,137.
In addition, the province added nine more cases of P.1 (Brazilian variant), which brings its total number of cases to 4,133.
Ontario does not currently report how many cases of the B.1.617 variant, originally found in India, are found in the province.
Ontario entered the first step of its reopening plan on Friday, allowing patios and some non-essential retail to open for the first time in months.
MORE THAN 1.7M PEOPLE FULLY VACCINATED IN ONTARIO
The province reports that 1,796,782 people in Ontario have received both doses of a COVID-19 vaccine and are now considered vaccinated against the disease.
In the last 24-hour period, officials said 186,415 doses of the vaccine were administered to Ontario residents.
Just over 11.2 million vaccine doses have been administered in the province since the rollout began earlier this year.
Background
The numbers used in this story are found in the Ontario Ministry of Health's COVID-19 Daily Epidemiologic Summary. The number of cases for any city or region may differ slightly from what is reported by the province, because local units report figures at different times.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Half of Canadians have negative opinion of latest Liberal budget: poll
A new poll suggests the Liberals have not won over voters with their latest budget, though there is broad support for their plan to build millions of homes.
opinion Why you should protect your investments by naming a trusted contact person
Appointing a trusted person to help with financial obligations can give you peace of mind. In his personal finance column for CTVNews.ca, Christopher Liew outlines the key benefits of naming a confidant to take over your financial responsibilities, if the need ever arises.
Twins from Toronto were Canada's top two female finishers at this year's Boston Marathon
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
NASA hears from Voyager 1, the most distant spacecraft from Earth, after months of quiet
NASA has finally heard back from Voyager 1 again in a way that makes sense. The most distant spacecraft from Earth hadn't sent home any understandable data since last November.
U.S. Senate passes bill forcing TikTok's parent company to sell or face ban, sends to Biden for signature
The Senate passed legislation Tuesday that would force TikTok's China-based parent company to sell the social media platform under the threat of a ban, a contentious move by U.S. lawmakers that's expected to face legal challenges.
Train derailed in Sarnia after colliding with a truck
Police are investigating after a transport truck collided with a train in Sarnia.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.