MUSKOKA SCHOOLS RE-OPEN MONDAY, AS COVID CASES IN GRAVENHURST, BRACEBRIDGE

Mark Clairmont | MuskokaTODAY.com

SIMCOE-MUSKOKA — With news that Muskoka schools will re-open for classes Monday, Feb. 8, Simcoe-Muskoka is reporting 36 new COVID cases today.

Two of them are men in Muskoka:

  • One was said by the health unit earlier to be from an outbreak Jan. 22 at Muskoka Shores in Gravenhurst, and reported from yesterday. He is aged 65-79. But Muskoka Shores said in a report later this afternoon that there are no resident cases there, which is no longer on the health unit website.
  • The other is a Bracebridge resident aged 35-44, and was community-acquired with a first episode of Jan. 22.

And 4 more reported deaths since yesterday bring the total to 159.

The province announced this afternoon that schools in Muskoka and Trillium Lakelands District School Board will re-open Monday, Feb. 8.

Students in Toronto, Peel and York will be back the Tuesday after, Feb. 16.

Confirmed variants are now 90 with 57 pending.

The COVID total is 5,548 and active cases are 968, up 47 from a day ago.

There are also 5 more people in hospital totaling 38 today.

The figures are subject to change as health units across Ontario move data to a provincial reporting system that should more accurately report and compare statistics across the board.

This as Ontario’s numbers went up today as part of that information change.

Today Health Minister Christine Elliott reports 1,172 cases and 67 deaths.

Toronto is only reporting 444 adjusted cases, Peel 199, York 110, Durham 44 and Halton 24.

Quebec reports 1,053 cases and 67 deaths; Manitoba 126 cases, 3 deaths.

The pandemic death toll the past three week totals 69 as of today.

NOTES:

  • To date 90 local cases have been tested positive for the COVID-19 variant of concern UK B.1.1.7 and an additional 57 cases have screened positive (awaiting confirmatory testing)
  • 17,737 doses of the Pfizer vaccine have been administered in Simcoe North and Muskoka (492 yesterday). This includes nearly 2,200 individuals that have received both of the required doses of the vaccine. And 2,851 (89 per cent) long-term care residents and 2,241 (61 per cent) retirement home residents have received their first dose.
  • There have been 99 new cases reported to the health unit for the current week. There were 301 new cases reported to the health unit last week, more than 30 per cent lower than the 442 cases reported for the week before.
  • In January 84 died from COVID-19, over four times higher than the number of deaths in December when 18 people died.
U.S. Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, of Georgia, falsely claimed the Parkland and Sandy Hook school shootings were staged.

IN OTHER COVID NEWS …

  • Alberta calls for people with variant contacts to isolate for 24 days.
  • Canada top doc Theresa Tam confirms 148 people country-wide have variant.
  • U.S. Democrats move to oust Marjorie Taylor Greene from committee roles after the Georgia Republican Representative falsely suggested the Parkland and Sandy Hook school shootings staged. Republicans have refused to sanction her. Some other GOP members are now calling for a Democratic representative to be likewise reprimanded for violating “rules of decorum & principles of American decency” like being anti-law enforcement.
  • San Francisco suing school board to get students back in classes.
After a few days of absence, Muskoka has two more COVID cases today in Gravenhurst and Bracebridge.
Where are we at today, Feb. 3, in Simcoe-Muskoka.

 

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