Ontario logs just over 1,000 new COVID-19 cases as state of emergency lifts

The Government of Ontario confirmed 1,022 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday morning, just as the State of Emergency lifts.

A second State of Emergency was implemented on January 12 and expired today.

The province is also reporting 1,388 newly resolved cases and 17 additional deaths.

Today’s case count is lower than Monday’s 1,265, Sunday’s 1,489, Saturday’s 1,388, Friday’s 1,670, Thursday’s 1,563, Wednesday’s 1,172, and Tuesday’s 745, which didn’t include Toronto Public Health’s cases.

Of the newly announced cases, 343 are in Toronto, 250 are in Peel, and 128 are in York Region.

Health Minister Christie Elliott said nearly 30,800 tests were completed and 398,633 doses of the COVID-19 vaccines have been administered.

Ontario is reporting 1,022 cases of #COVID19 and nearly 30,800 tests completed. Locally, there are 343 new cases in Toronto, 250 in Peel and 128 in York Region.

As of 8:00 p.m. yesterday, 398,633 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered.

— Christine Elliott (@celliottability) February 9, 2021

There are now 69 confirmed cases of the UK COVID-19 variant in Ontario, and the first South African variant was detected on February 1.

Health officials have called the fast-spreading variant a “significant threat” and noted that it may impact Ontario’s lockdown measures.

There is no evidence to suggest that approved vaccines will be any less effective against the newfound variants.

At the end of January, major Canadian airlines, including WestJet and Air Canada, cancelled service to Mexico and the Caribbean until the end of April.

On February 1, mandatory COVID-19 testing began at Toronto’s Pearson Airport. While international travellers await the results of their test they will need to quarantine at an approved hotel at their own expense.

Stay at Home orders have been in effect since January 14 and are set to expire in 28 regions on February 16, with Toronto, Peel, and York set to expire on February 22.

Once the orders are lifted regions will move back into the province’s colour-coded system, which will allow all retail to reopen with specific guidelines depending on the colour.

To date, Ontario has seen 280,494 COVID-19 cases and  6,555 virus-related deaths.