Ontario in ‘2nd wave’ as COVID-19 cases break daily record: Premier Ford

Ontario officials say we are now into the second wave of COVID-19. Cynthia Mulligan with how the province is planning to wage what’s expected to be a tougher battle than the one we faced in the spring.

By News Staff

Posted September 28, 2020 10:34 am.

Last Updated September 28, 2020 6:53 pm.

With Ontario’s daily COVID-19 case count reaching a record high of 700 on Monday, Premier Doug Ford says the province is now officially in the midst of the pandemic’s dreaded second wave.

“Today’s numbers, they’re deeply concerning,” Ford said Monday.

“Our health officials are telling us that Ontario is now in the second wave of COVID-19.”

Ford said the second wave would be more complex and “worse” than the first wave, and added that “everything is on the table” when it comes to stemming the spike in cases.

Ford said the province has committed to spending $52 million to hire and train thousands of new health workers, including 800 more nurses, 600 acute care nurses for hospitals and long-term care homes, and 2,000 more personal support workers.

Ontario is reporting 700 cases of #COVID19 with more than 41,100 tests completed. Locally, there are 344 new cases in Toronto with 104 in Peel, 89 in Ottawa and 56 in York Region. 60% of today’s cases are in people under the age of 40.

— Christine Elliott (@celliottability) September 28, 2020

On Friday, Ford announced new rules to help curb the surge in COVID-19 cases.

Bars and restaurants will now be required to close at midnight, except for takeout and delivery, and will have to stop serving alcohol by 11 p.m.

The province also ordered all strip clubs to close.

Before Monday’s record high of 700, the previous high was 640 new cases reported on April 24.

The most new cases reported Monday were in Toronto (344) followed by Peel (104) and York Region (56).

One more person has died, bringing the death toll to 2,840.

A total of 50,531 people have now tested positive in Ontario, with 85.3 per cent of cases considered resolved.

The spike in cases comes as the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) established to support Canadians financially impacted by the pandemic ended on Sunday.

With files from The Canadian Press