Canada adds 7,817 new COVID-19 cases as Ontario touts possible curfew

The spread of the novel coronavirus in Canada painted a lopsided picture Sunday, as one province broke its record in newly reported COVID-19 cases and another recorded none for the first time in eight weeks.

Ontario reported nearly 4,000 new coronavirus cases as the spread of the virus in the nation’s most populous province began to prompt warnings from officials and health authorities of the virus spiraling out of control.

Government sources have since told Global News that the province is considering implementing a similar curfew to that of Quebec, with measures to be set in place from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m.

Quebec’s curfew came into effect Saturday evening, with most residents not being able to leave home during those times except for essential workers or those walking their dogs.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Friday that “everything is on the table” when it came to selecting new measures to stop the spread of the virus.

2:42 Quebec’s pandemic curfew is put to the test

That announcement was contrasted with new case data from Atlantic provinces Sunday, where New Brunswick recorded 14 new cases, Newfoundland and Labrador its first in several days and Nova Scotia zero new infections for the first time since Nov. 12.

On Twitter, Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam said that “disease activity remains widespread across Canada, and nationally, we remain on the path of continuing resurgence.”

Her comments come amid a total of 7,817 new cases reported today across the country, raising Canada’s COVID-19 caseload to 659,788.

Another 117 people have died in Canada from the virus as well, with the national death toll standing at 16,950. Over 545,900 people have since recovered from the virus, however, while at least 19,371,000 tests have been administered.

Sunday’s snapshot of the virus’ spread across Canada remains limited however, with provinces like B.C. and P.E.I., as well as all of the territories, not reporting their COVID-19 data on the weekend.

Of those that did report new numbers Sunday, both Ontario and Quebec registered the highest daily case increases.

Quebec, which implemented Canada’s strictest health measures to date with a curfew Saturday night, recorded another 2,588 cases. The hardest hit province has now tallied a total of 228,821 cases, while another 39 deaths pushed its death toll to 8,686.

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Alberta’s cases now stand at 111,452 after another 811 cases were reported there Sunday. Twelve more deaths were also reported in the province.

Saskatchewan added another 307 cases while Manitoba reported 151.

Worldwide, cases of the virus continue to spread with infections now surpassing the 90-million mark as of Sunday, according to Johns Hopkins University. Over 1,933,000 people have also died from the virus, with the US., India and Brazil continuing to lead in both cases and deaths.

— With files from the Canadian Press and Global News’ Ryan Rocca