8 MORE DEATHS IN REGION TODAY, AS ‘TRILATERAL’ GOVERNMENT MEETING PLANNED TO ADDRESS PROTESTS

Mark Clairmont | MuskokaTODAY.com

SIMCOE-MUSKOKA — With a state of emergency in Ottawa and provincial capital buildings also on guard against protests led by truckers, 8 deaths in Simcoe and 45 cases yesterday highlight the weekend’s COVID by the health unit.

They are among 324 virus cases on the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit (SMDH) website Monday.

Those who passed away most recently include:

  1. Male 45-64, Simcoe, community, DOD – Feb. 3
  2. Female 80+, Simcoe, ob-related, DOD – Jan. 24
  3. Male 65-79, Simcoe, ob-related, DOD – Feb. 4
  4. Male, 35-44, Simcoe, sporadic, DOD – Feb. 3
  5. Female, 65-79, Simcoe, ob-related, DOD – Feb. 6
  6. Female, 18-34, Simcoe, sporadic, DOD – Jan. 26
  7. Male, 80+, Simcoe, sporadic, DOD – Feb. 3
  8. Male, 65-79, Simcoe, sporadic, DOD – Feb 2

They bring the region’s official total number of deaths to 371.

There 48 residents regionally in hospital, including as of yesterday 9 in ICU.

Meanwhile, visitations to the south wing of the Huntsville District Memorial Hospital have been suspended following a COVID-19 outbreak.

One patient and one staff member tested positive and the SMDHU has placed the wing under unit-specific COVID-19 outbreak status.

A Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare release Saturday says testing of patients and staff is occurring as part of outbreak management protocols, and enhanced cleaning practices are underway to limit spread.

And the east wing at the hospital is under enhanced surveillance for COVID-19 and all patients are being monitored for symptoms COVID-19.

At this time there are no restrictions for Designated Care Partners who are visiting patients on the east wing.

Health officials there advise that “adherence to mask wearing and good hand hygiene is paramount.”

Police in Ottawa are having trouble policing protesters and keeping an eye on petty crime due to a lack of officers.

But a judge has granted a 10-day stay on truck horns and air horns that have frazzled the nerves of Parliament Hill neighbours.

Federal Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair is proposing a “trilateral” government meeting to address protests.

MONDAY: PHO CONFIRMED COVID CASES: … 89 IN SIMCOE-MUSKOKA (128 YESTERDAY) … ONTARIO 2,088 AND 11 DEATHS; 2,155 IN HOSPITAL, 486 IN ICU … TORONTO 370 (468) … YORK 137 (171) … PEEL 147 (299) … NORTH BAY-PARRY SOUND 25 (30) …

A break in the weather allows for a lift of snow around fire hydrants in Gravenhurst, here down Bay Street near the Wharf on one of the sadly poorest maintained stretches of road in Gravenhurst making for a missed opportunity to highlight the west entrance to the Gateway to Muskoka.

HEALTH UNIT HIGHLIGHTS:

  • 32,791 confirmed cases to date
  • 45 this week, starting Sunday
  • 924 cases last week, 32% lower than the 1,355 cases the last week of January
  • 13 deaths in February, 67 in January
  • From July 18th to February 6th, the rate of COVID-19 hospitalizations among the unvaccinated vaccine-eligible Simcoe Muskoka population is 6 times higher than it is for those who have received at least two vaccine doses, the rate of COVID-19 ICU admissions is 10 times higher and the rate of deaths is 4 times higher.
  • 1,253,972 vaccines have been administered
  • 495,154 residents have received at least one vaccine, which represents 82% of the total population.
  • 86% of the population 5+ have had at least one vaccine’ including 82% of youth 12 to 17 years of age
  • 49% of children 5 to 11 have also received at least one dose of vaccine
Hospitalizations as of Sunday sat at 48, with 9 in ICU and 10 admitted overnight.

IN OTHER COVID NEWS …

  • While Ontario hospitalizations are trending down, Quebec is starting to see the opposite
  • Some Ontario universities including UofT and Waterloo will resume in-person teaching Monday next.
  • Global media outlets are reporting on protests in Canada, predictably with two sides of the story. American news outlets are pro and con. The Russians claim the CBC show Power and Politics floated the idea that Moscow may be behind some of the unrest.
  • Supply chains may be threatened, but truckers are still able to deliver goods to those demonstrating. No word on whether pizza deliveries are getting to them in 30 minutes.

EMAIL: [email protected]

28 years of ‘Local Online Journalism’

Twitter: @muskokatoday, Facebook: mclairmont1

Leave comments at end of story

SUBSCRIBE for $25 by e-transferring to [email protected]

Or go online to https://muskokatoday.com/subscriptions