Coronavirus: Latest developments in the Greater Toronto Area on March 1

Here are the latest developments on the coronavirus pandemic in the Greater Toronto Area for Monday.

A school in Scarborough has been closed due to an outbreak involving a COVID-19 variant of concern.

In a news release issued Monday evening, Toronto health officials said they recommended Donwood Park Public School dismiss staff and students due to the outbreak, which involves six people, four of whom have screened positive for a variant.

Toronto’s Porter Airlines has set a new tentative reopening date again of May 19 amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

The airline suspended its operations in March 2020 due to COVID-19 and the restart date has since been pushed several times. The last tentative date was March 29.

Canada Post says it suspended service to two more apartment buildings in Toronto after residents were reportedly seen not wearing masks.

Residents of 100 and 150 Graydon Hall, near Don Mills Road and Highway 401, are being asked to now pick up their mail at the nearest post office, 70 Wynford Dr., which is more than six kilometres away from the buildings.

A statement from Canada Post to Global News on Sunday said the reasoning is due to “safety concerns.”

“Within the areas of the buildings delivery employees must access to deliver mail, some individuals are not wearing masks. This is a safety risk and we have advised the buildings’ management,” the statement explained.

Toronto has started vaccinating some of its police force against COVID-19 after the province identified the officers as a priority group.

A spokeswoman for the force says frontline police constables and sergeants have been identified as a group included in the first phase of Ontario’s vaccine rollout.

Connie Osborne says those officers respond to emergency calls where medical assistance may be required.

Residents of Peel Region aged 80 and older are now eligible to register to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, local officials said Monday.

“With over 50,000 first doses of COVID-19 vaccine delivered in Peel, anticipated increases in supply now supports the addition of new groups eligible for COVID-19 vaccination,” a news release said.

However, officials warned that current supply continues to limit the number of available appointments but noted that in the coming weeks as more vaccines are received, additional slots will open.

Peel Region Public Health is in damage control mode after fierce backlash erupted online over a policy regarding the self-isolation of asymptomatic students after a cohort was sent home.

The lack of clarity on a flyer that was sent home to parents, which suggested children must be isolated from the rest of their family at home, has sparked anger online after it was reported on by the Toronto Sun over the weekend.

Ontario is looking at possibly delaying second doses of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines to nearly four months after a person receives their first shot.

In a joint statement issued Monday, Health Minister Christine Elliott and Solicitor General Sylvia Jones said there is “growing evidence” that suggests the interval between the first and second doses can be safely extended to four months “while maintaining a strong and sustained level of protection from COVID-19.”

Some Ontario seniors braved frigid temperatures Monday to get a COVID-19 vaccine as several regions in the province moved ahead with their plans to vaccinate the general public.

With the broad launch of a provincial booking portal still two weeks away, some local public health units used their own systems to allow residents aged 80 and older to schedule appointments.

Demand for electricity in Ontario last year fell to levels rarely seen in decades amid shifts in usage patterns caused by pandemic measures, new data show.

The decline came despite a hot summer that had people rushing to crank up the air conditioning at home, the province’s power management agency said.

In all, Ontario used 132.2 terawatt-hours of power in 2020, a decline of 2.9 per cent from 2019.

Ontario reported a total of 1,023 new coronavirus cases on Monday.

Of those:

• 280 were in Toronto
• 182 were in Peel Region
• 47 were in York Region
• 34 were in Durham Region
• 39 were in Halton Region

Ontario is reporting 1,023 new coronavirus cases on Monday, bringing the provincial total to 301,839.

The death toll in the province has risen to 6,986 as six more virus-related fatalities were reported which is the lowest single-day increase in deaths since the end of October.

Resolved cases increased by 939 from the previous day. The government said 35,015 tests were processed in the last 24 hours

According to the Ministry of Long-Term Care, there have been 3,744 deaths reported among residents and patients in long-term care homes across Ontario which is unchanged from yesterday. Eleven virus-related deaths in total have been reported among staff.

There are 106 current outbreaks in homes, which is unchanged from the previous day.

The ministry also indicated there are currently 80 active cases among long-term care residents and 179 active cases among staff — cases for both have stayed the same in the last 24 hours.

Government figures show there have been a total of 8,563 school-related COVID-19 cases in Ontario to date. This is an increase of 116 more cases in the last day — 99 student cases, 15 staff cases and two were not identified.

The COVID-19 cases are currently from 530 out of 4,828 schools in the province. Twenty schools in Ontario are currently closed as a result of positive cases, the government indicated.

There have been a total of 2,675 confirmed cases within child care centres and homes — an increase of 13 (seven new child cases and six staff cases). Out of 5,264 child care centres in Ontario, 139 currently have cases and 21 centres are closed.

— With files from Matthew Bingley and The Canadian Press