Here are the latest developments on the coronavirus pandemic in the Greater Toronto Area for Wednesday.
Child care available for elementary-aged children of essential service workers during lockdown in Toronto
The City of Toronto says emergency child care will be available for school-aged children of essential workers in publicly funded elementary schools during the remote learning week from Jan. 4 to Jan. 8, 2021.
“During this period, emergency child care services will be available for designated essential service providers who are not able to accommodate their school-aged child’s learning or care at home,” city officials said.
Officials said the child-care service is reserved exclusively for essential workers only due to the provincewide lockdown. The lockdown measures mandate elementary students do online learning for the first week back. In-class learning resumes the following week.
Status of cases in the GTA
Ontario reported a total of 2,923 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday.
Of those:
- 998 were in Toronto
- 349 were in Peel Region
- 408 were in York Region
- 158 were in Durham Region
- 114 were in Halton Region
Ontario reports single-day record of nearly 3,000 new coronavirus cases
Ontario is reporting 2,923 new cases of the coronavirus on Wednesday, another new record for cases within 24 hours. The provincial total now stands at 178,831.
Get weekly health news
The death toll in the province has risen to 4,474 as 19 more deaths were reported.
Ontario said 39,210 tests were processed in the last 24 hours. Resolved cases increased by 2,237 from the previous day.
Doug Ford says he knew of finance minister’s trip 2 weeks ago, should have asked him to return then
Ontario’s premier acknowledged Wednesday that he made a mistake in allowing his finance minister to continue a vacation abroad over the holidays as experts warned the incident undermines the government’s messaging regarding COVID-19 measures.
In a brief news conference at a Toronto-area hospital, Doug Ford said he learned roughly two weeks ago that Rod Phillips had left the country and should have pushed for the minister’s immediate return.
CN Tower light show for New Year’s Eve streamed online
The City of Toronto says it is putting on a light show with the CN Tower and sound from CHUM1045 for a New Year’s Eve celebration online.
Officials said the light show will provide a safe and engaging way to ring in the new year in the comfort of Torontonians’ homes with members of their household. It will be livestreamed on the City of Toronto’s YouTube page starting at 11:58 p.m. on Dec. 31.
“Based on the recommendations of Toronto’s Medical Officer of Health, to help stop the spread of COVID-19, the City, like other municipalities across Canada, is celebrating New Year’s Eve virtually. All in-person New Year’s Eve events, including celebrations in Nathan Phillips Square, have been cancelled,” city officials said in a news release on Wednesday.
— With files from The Canadian Press
Comments