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Ontario Governor Doug Ford announced a series of new restrictions on Monday, which will take effect on Boxing Day. He said: “There are thousands of people in danger now. If we don’t take action now, the consequences could be catastrophic.”
According to restrictions, the blockade of communities in the northern part of the province will last for two weeks, while the blockade of densely populated cities in the south will last for a full month.
On Monday, there were 2123 new cases of new crown infection in Ontario. This is the seventh consecutive day that the province has more than 2,000 new cases in a single day. In the late summer, the number of new cases per day in Ontario was only single digits. The earlier model of
shows that if interventions are not taken, Ontario may have more than 5,000 new cases per day by early January. In the worst case, as many as 1,500 patients may be admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). This figure is approximately 5.5 times the current level.
Doug Ford (data map)
Ontario health officials pointed out that the "hard lockdown" measures in France and Australia have successfully slowed the spread of the virus.
On the other hand, Governor Ford defended the postponement of the new measures, saying that companies need to adjust and clear inventory.
Previously, Toronto and Peel, the two most severely affected areas in the province, have been locked down for nearly a month, and indoor restaurants, salons and gyms have been closed. Only "essential" businesses-such as grocery stores and pharmacies-are allowed to continue operating.
Ontario’s latest lockdown measures extended these restrictions to other parts of the province, closing all non-essential businesses. There will be fewer customers in retail stores, and some previously indispensable services can only be changed to kerb-side pickup. However, some industries (including logistics companies) that have already experienced outbreaks in the workplace will continue to operate.
Ontario will also extend the winter vacation for students. High school students will not return to school before January 25.
Since late November last year, the total number of inpatients in the province has increased by 70%, and the number of ICU inpatients has increased by 80%.
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Before Ford announced the news, the Ontario Hospital Association stated in a statement that due to the surge in cases, medical workers were "excessively stressed."
There are currently more than 77,000 active cases across Canada and 14,228 deaths.
(Edit: WDQ)
