Here are the latest developments on the coronavirus pandemic in the Greater Toronto Area for Sunday.
City of Toronto to begin vaccinating those using homeless shelters
The city of Toronto says COVID-19 vaccines will start to be administered to those experiencing homelessness in the city’s shelter system this week.
In a news release issued Sunday, local officials said the province confirmed this weekend that those experiencing homelessness are part of its Phase 1 priority for vaccines.
York Region residents aged 80 and older can book vaccine appointments starting Monday
York Region residents aged 80 and older can begin to book vaccine appointments starting Monday.
“Caregivers will be able to book appointments on behalf of a York Region resident age 80 or older,” York Region’s website says.
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“Please remain patient over the next couple of days as we finalize these booking details.”
Provincewide, those aged 80 and older are expected to be able to schedule an appointment for a COVID-19 vaccine beginning on March 15, however local public health units can decide to begin administering the doses earlier if supply permits.
Canada Post stops mail delivery to 2 North York buildings
Canada Post says mail delivery to two North York apartment buildings has been suspended amid concerns about residents not wearing masks.
In a statement on Sunday, the postal service said the buildings are located on Graydon Hall Drive in the area of Highway 404 and Highway 401.
“Within the areas of the buildings delivery employees must access to deliver mail, some individuals are not wearing masks,” the statement read.
“This is a safety risk and we have advised the buildings’ management.”
The statement said that in the meantime, residents can pick up their mail at 70 Wynford Drive. Mail delivery to the two buildings will resume “once it is safe to do so,” the postal service said.
Toronto Raptors game postponed because of COVID-19
Sunday’s Toronto Raptors game against Chicago has been postponed due to COVID-19 health and safety protocols.
A statement from the NBA says that because of positive test results and ongoing contact tracing, the Raptors don’t have the league-required eight available players.
Status of cases in the GTA
Ontario reported a total of 1,062 new coronavirus cases on Sunday.
Of those:
- 259 were in Toronto
- 201 were in Peel Region
- 86 were in York Region
- 23 were in Durham Region
- 47 were in Halton Region
Ontario surpasses 300K total COVID-19 cases
Ontario reported 1,062 cases of the novel coronavirus Sunday, bringing the total number of cases in the province to 300,816.
A total of 283,344 COVID-19 cases are considered resolved, which is up by 1,029 and is 94.2 per cent of all confirmed cases.
Twenty additional deaths were also reported on Sunday, bringing the provincial death toll to 6,980.
The province indicated that the positivity rate for the last day was 2.4 per cent, which is up from Saturday’s report, when it was 2.1 per cent, and is down from last Sunday’s report when it was 2.7 per cent.
Over 19K more vaccine doses administered
As of 8 p.m. Saturday, 687,271 COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered in Ontario, which is up by 19,167. So far, 262,103 people in the province are considered to be fully vaccinated.