In a series of tweets Monday, Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam warned of the new, more transmissible coronavirus variants that are “gaining ground” in Canada.
She said all Canadians must do “our utmost to prevent opportunities for them to spread.”
Meanwhile, officials across the country are working to vaccinate those most vulnerable to the virus.
According to Health Canada, as of Thursday, a total of 1,198,200 doses of the two approved COVID-19 vaccines had been distributed across the country.
Canada has struggled to maintain a steady rollout of vaccines as both Pfizer and Moderna have announced the country’s shipments would be impacted by temporary delays.
The federal government has maintained, though, that every Canadian who wants a vaccine will have access to one by the end of September.
Thousands of new cases reported
In Ontario, 1,265 new cases and 33 more fatalities were reported on Monday, pushing the total number of infections and deaths to 279,472 and 6,538 respectively.
The new cases come as the province announced it would begin a phased reopening on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Quebec reported the lowest number of new daily cases in weeks, adding 853 new infections.
To date, Quebec has seen 270,911 COVID-19 infections.
Provincial health officials said 17 more people have died, pushing the total death toll to 10,046.
Saskatchewan reported 171 new cases of the virus on Monday, for a total of 25,574 infections.
Two more people have died in the province, pushing the total number of fatalities in Saskatchewan to 341.
Health authorities in Manitoba said 52 more people have contracted the virus and four more people have died.
To date, Manitoba has seen 30,289 COVID-19 infections and 850 deaths.
In Atlantic Canada, 14 new cases of the disease were detected.
Health officials in Newfoundland and Labrador reported 11 new cases of the virus, while New Brunswick saw two new novel coronavirus infections.
Nova Scotia authorities said one more person has contracted the virus for a total of 1,586.
Prince Edward Island did not release any new COVID-19 data on Monday, however, the latest numbers from Feb. 4 suggest the province has seen 113 cases, 110 of which are considered to be recovered.
None of the Maritime provinces or Newfoundland and Labrador reported any new deaths related to COVID-19.
In western Canada, 612 new cases of the disease were detected.
Alberta added 269 new cases and five more fatalities.
To date, the province has seen 127,036 infections and 1,710 deaths related to the coronavirus.
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Meanwhile, health authorities in British Columbia said 343 more people have contracted COVID-19, pushing the province’s total case load to 70,952.
One more person has died in B.C., meaning to date, the virus has claimed 1,259 lives in the province.
No new cases or deaths were detected in Canada’s territories on Monday.
Global infections top 106 million
To date, 106,428,655 people around the world have contracted the novel coronavirus, according to a tally from Johns Hopkins University.
Since it was first detected in 2019, the virus has claimed more than 2.3 million people globally.
In the United States, which remains the world’s viral epicentre, more than 27 million people have fallen ill, and over 464,700 people have died after testing positive for COVID-19.
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