46 REGIONAL CASES TODAY AS EASTER LOCKDOWN LOOMS

Mark Clairmont | MuskokaTODAY.com

SIMCOE-MUSKOKA — As an Easter lockdown looms, a young Bracebridge man is among 46 regional COVID cases the health unit is reporting today.

He is 18-34 and his cause is under investigation, after being first reported yesterday and

detected the day before.

His case is the most recent one in Muskoka the past five days since a man 35-44 from Muskoka Lakes tested positive March 26.

The 41 other cases are all listed as being in Simcoe.

Public Health Ontario had earlier today posted a count of 24 for Simcoe-Muskoka.

Variants accounted for 34 of the new regional cases as they increased to 1,266 today from 1,232 yesterday.

Hospitalizations are also up today, by 3, to 35.

This as worrisome new numbers are emerging province-wide about 421 people in ICU — 32 more Tuesday and a single day record of 46 on Monday.

They are all among 2,333 new people in the province with the coronavirus, which is down 3 cases from Tuesday.

Fifteen people have also died in Ontario since yesterday’s provincial accounting.

Toronto took a huge daily jump to 785 from 434. Peel was also up more than a hundred in going from 229 to 433. York increase to 222 from 194.

Quebec jumped significantly today to 1,025 with 9 deaths after 864 cases yesterday.

Manitoba is reporting 1 death and 71 cases.

HEALTH UNIT HIGHLIGHTS:

  • 852 UK variants, 18 from Brazil, 1 from South Africa.
  • 395 more VOCs await second confirmation.
  • Nearly 93,500 vaccines have been administered, mostly Pfizer; however more than 4,400 AstraZeneca vaccines have gone to adults 60-64; and another 1,700 Moderna doses have also been injected.
  • 3,730 total vaccines were distributed yesterday.
  • There have now been 130 new cases reported to the health unit for the current week, 307 last week and 261 a week before.
Worrisome variant cases rose by 32 show health unit figures today.

IN OTHER COVID NEWS …

  • Doctor who linked AZ to blood clots says fear not.
  • 66 cases of influenza as of March 20 in Canada compared to 43,000 that time last year.
  • Tourism decimated last year, cut by half says Statistics Canada, with 29 per cent of jobs lost in second quarter.

MUSKOKA TODAY’S RECAP …

WEDNESDAY: COVID BY THE NUMBERS … 24 CASES IN SIMCOE-MUSKOKA … ONTARIO 2,333 … NORTH BAY-PARRY SOUND 1, PETERBOROUGH 5, SUDBURY 26 … TORONTO 785, YORK 222, PEEL 433 … SANOFIL TO BUILD NEW VACCINE MANUFACTURING, DISTRIBUTTIN CENTRE IN TORONTO TO OPEN IN 2026. IT ALREADY HAS A PLANT IN NORTH YORK. THE BUILD WILL SEE IT INVEST $79M AND  GET $415M FROM OTTAWA AND $55M FROM ONTARIO … PFIZER SAYS ITS VACCINE IS 100% EFFECTIVE IN KIDS 12-15 … YORK REGION OPENS VACCINES TO THOSE BORNIN IN 1956 AND EARLIER … ONTARIO’S 7-DAY AVERAGE NOW 2,316 … SOME LOCAL DOCTORS NOT ANSWERING CALLS OR EVEN OFFERING VOICE MAIL … QUEBEC REPORTS SURGE TO 1,025 CASES, 9 DEATHS … KIMBERLY CLARK UPPING PRICES OF TOILET PAPER, ALL DIAPERS IN JUNE IN CANADA … UN HEALTH AGENCY SAYS GLOBAL CASES UP FIFTH WEEK IN A ROW … WHO SAYS DEATHS ALSO UP EXCEPT IN AFRICA … TORONTO URGES DECADE DROP IN VACCINE AGE GROUPS TO 60 … FLU SEASON NOTHING COMPARED TO LAST YEAR. ONLY 66 CASES COMPARED TO 43,000 IN CANADA AS OF MARCH 20 … CANADIAN TOURISM CUT IN HALF IN 2020 SAYS STATS CANADA — AND RELATED JOBS FELL 29 PER CENT IN SECOND QUARTER …

The start of April tomorrow could mean more changes as an Easter lockdown for parts if not all of the province looms.

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