Tory ends Toronto’s COVID-19 emergency declaration after 777 days

Toronto’s mayor formally ended the city’s municipal emergency COVID-19 declaration, authorized in March 2020.

The city’s state of emergency enabled officials to address the public health situation routinely throughout the pandemic. The 2020 emergency declaration was the first in the history of the modern city of Toronto and was in line with similar emergency COVID-19 measures by surrounding municipalities, including the province.

John Tory says the decision to terminate the COVID-19 emergency ruling was made in consultation with Toronto’s medical officer of health, Dr. Eileen de Villa.

“I’m very happy today that we’re able to be here saying the state of emergency after 777 days is to be lifted,” Tory said outside city hall.

“Things keep getting better. The numbers keep getting better, the number of people getting vaccinated (keeps) getting better, and I think that’s what it means to me — it’s just that we’re on the right track.”

RELATED: Timeline — A year of COVID-19 pandemic life in Toronto

The emergency declaration allowed the city to redeploy roughly 1,700 public employees to shelters, long-term care homes and other areas that required extra support during the pandemic, Tory said. All but 40 of those redeployed employees have now returned to their original jobs.

The Ford government first sanctioned a state of emergency across Ontario on March 17, 2020, which ordered the immediate closure of non-essential businesses. Six days later, Tory declared a state of emergency in Toronto.

According to the city, the declaration was in place to strengthen recommendations made by de Villa and to “cease all non-essential work and activities to help stop the spread of COVID-19.”

Toronto Mayor John Tory attends an announcement at a COVID-19 vaccine centre in Toronto on July 23, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS IMAGES/Chris Young

Tory is now empowered to issue orders, implement the City’s Emergency Plan, and better protect individuals’ health, safety, and welfare within Toronto. The mayor says the city’s ongoing efforts against COVID-19 “have placed Toronto in a position where the emergency declared in response to the pandemic can be terminated.”

“As Team Toronto’s world-leading COVID-19 vaccination campaign continues, I want to thank everyone who has worked to help people get vaccinated and deliver more than 7 million doses so far,” the mayor added.

“Most importantly, I want to thank Toronto residents who have worked with us throughout the emergency period of the pandemic to make sure we get through these tough times and come back stronger than ever.”

The COVID-19 climate in Ontario has improved in recent days. On Monday, there were no virus-related deaths in the province with hospitalizations down nearly 15 per cent in the last week.

Monday marks the second day in May that the province has recorded no new daily deaths.

De Villa credited the rapid evolution of science, which has allowed health officials to learn more about how the virus spreads.

“These past years have been incredibly difficult for everyone, and while we continue to see virus activity in our city, we are in a much better place thanks to your efforts to protect each other and the tools and knowledge that we can use to safely enjoy many of the things we love and missed in our city,” she said.

With files from The Canadian Press