Ontario reporting over 3300 new COVID-19 cases as Stay at Home order begins

The Government of Ontario confirmed 3,326 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday morning, as the Stay at Home order takes effect today.

On Wednesday, cases were below 3,000 with 2,961, as was the case with Tuesday’s 2,903.

Prior to January 12, cases had been above 3,000 for over a week, with Monday’s 3,338, Sunday’s 3,945, Saturday’s 3,443, Friday’s record-breaking 4,249, Thursday’s 3,519, Wednesday’s 3,266, Tuesday’s 3,128, and Monday’s 3,270.

The province is also reporting 3,593 resolved cases with 62 more virus-related deaths.

Of the newly announced cases, 968 are in Toronto, 572 are in Peel, 357 are in York Region, and 268 are in Windsor-Essex County.

Health Minister Christine Elliott said nearly 71,200 tests were completed.

Ontario is reporting 3,326 cases of #COVID19 and nearly 71,200 tests completed. Locally, there are 968 new cases in Toronto, 572 in Peel, 357 in York Region and 268 in Windsor-Essex County.

As of 8:00 p.m. yesterday, 159,021 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered.

— Christine Elliott (@celliottability) January 14, 2021

She added, “As of 8:00 pm yesterday, 159,021 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered.”

There are now 14 cases of the UK COVID-19 variant in the province. The fast-spreading virus mutation was first detected in a couple from Durham Region.

Although the new variant of the virus has been found to spread quicker, there is no evidence to suggest that approved vaccines will be any less effective against it.

A second State of Emergency was announced by Premier Doug Ford, who also issued a Stay at Home order effective starting today. This means everyone must stay home and only go out for essential trips, such as going to the grocery store or pharmacy, accessing healthcare services, for exercise or for essential work.

Ontario is also currently under a province-wide lockdown. The restrictions will be evaluated throughout the lockdown, rather than when they are set to expire.

To date, Ontario has seen 228,310 COVID-19 cases and 5,189 deaths.