Three new cases of COVID-19 have been announced in Ontario, bringing the province’s number of confirmed cases up to 11.
Ontario Ministry of Health officials made the announcement in a news release Saturday afternoon and said two of the new cases involve patients with a travel history to Iran.
The third case involves the husband of one of those two patients, officials said.
A 34-year-old woman who arrived in Toronto on Wednesday contacted health officials on Thursday, who then coordinated a time for the woman to arrive at Mackenzie Health hospital in Richmond Hill.
The news release said she had a travel history to Iran and had a dry cough, runny nose, shortness of breath and a headache.
She was wearing a mask when she arrived at the hospital, officials said, adding she was ultimately not admitted due to the “low severity of symptoms” and is now in self-isolation.
In a separate news release, York Region Public Health said the woman travelled in the business class section of Qatar Airways flight QR 483 and QR 163 and Air Canada flight AC 883.
When the woman arrived in Toronto on Wednesday, she travelled on GO bus number 40 from Pearson Airport eastbound to Richmond Hill around 3:55 p.m.
York Region health officials said anyone who was sitting on the upper deck of the bus or near the woman on any of those flights may have been exposed to the virus and are encouraged to contact York Region Public Health.
Officials were also working to reach out to those passengers, but as of late Saturday afternoon said they did not yet receive the flight manifests.
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The second case involves a 51-year-old woman who returned to Toronto from Iran on Feb. 22 and went to an Ajax clinic on Friday with symptoms of a cough, chills and body aches, the Ministry of Health said.
The Durham Region Health Department then contacted Lakeridge Health Ajax Pickering and organized a time for the woman, who was wearing a mask, to arrive at the hospital. She was later discharged and put in self-isolation.
There is no word on the woman’s specific travel history.
The woman’s husband, a 69-year-old man who accompanied her to the clinic and hospital, also tested positive for COVID-19, but did not have a recent travel history to Iran, officials said. The man, who had a cough, was given a mask and isolated when he accompanied his wife.
He is also now in self-isolation at home.
“At this time the virus is not circulating locally,” the Ministry of Health said in Saturday’s update.
“However, given the global circumstances, Ontario is actively working with city and health partners to plan for the potential of local spread.”
Late Friday night, the province announced its eighth case of the virus after a man in his 80s with a travel history to Egypt went to a Scarborough hospital. He too later went into self-isolation.
Meanwhile, officials said of Ontario’s 11 cases, the first three have made a full recovery.
B.C. also announced another case of COVID-19 on Saturday, bringing that province’s total number of confirmed cases up to eight.
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