Worldwide stats provided by worldometers put the global COVID-19 number of reported cases today at 13,718,081. (Deaths: 587,330 and Recovered: 8,172,464) I emphasize reported because there is a wide variance in testing and manner of reporting from country to country and place to place.
As of 6:28 a.m. ET on Thursday July 16, 2020:
From Global News, Canada reported 108,802 confirmed cases of COVID-19.
As of 10:00 a.m. (when Ontario updates its daily stats) the official Province of Ontario website is reporting 37,163 (up 111) total confirmed cases and 2,737 total deaths. Currently, there are 107 people are in hospital with 26 of those in ICU. 33,061 cases have been resolved.
Quebec continues to have the highest reported cases in the country with 56,859. (129 new, same as yesterday??)
The Region of Durham reported 1,764 (5 new) confirmed cases of COVID-19. The site also reports 1 current outbreaks at Hospitals, LTCF's and Retirement Homes with 34 outbreaks having been "concluded." Currently, Clarington still sits at 102 total cases. (91 are resolved, 4 people are currently in isolation and 7 people have passed away. Hospitalized currently: "Zero")
In international news,
Walmart will require customers to wear masks at its stores effective July 20th. Walmart U.S. Chief Operating Officer Dacona Smith and Sam’s Club Chief Operating Officer Lance de la Rosa said in a post on the company’s website, the new requirement will keep customers and employees safe and “help bring consistency across stores and clubs” across its national footprint. “While we’re certainly not the first business to require face coverings, we know this is a simple step everyone can take for their safety and the safety of others in our facilities,” they said in the post. The articles do not mention Canada, yet. But, make no mistake...it's coming to Canada too.
What is really going on in Florida? COVID-19 Testing Data in Florida Inaccurate, Hospitals Say. Sky-high positivity rates listed by the Florida Department of Health in its daily CCP virus report are wrong, hospitals told The Epoch Times. “It looks like there is an error in the data report. Lee Health has not experienced 100% positivity in our lab testing,” Pat Dolce, a spokeswoman for Lee Health, said in an emailed statement on Tuesday. “We are reaching out to the Department of Health to resolve the discrepancy.” The report (pdf) showed that Orlando Health had a 98 percent positivity rate. That number “is incorrect,” an Orlando Health spokeswoman told The Epoch Times in an email. The hospital system’s positivity rate is 9.4 percent as of July 12, she said. The Orlando Veteran’s Medical Center was listed as having 76 percent positivity rate. But a Veterans Affairs spokeswoman told The Epoch Times that the positivity rate for the center is 7 percent. The positivity rate refers to the percentage of CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus tests that come back positive. The new virus from China causes COVID-19, a disease that kills a small percentage of patients. The Florida Department of Health reported an 11.5 percent positivity rate across the state on Monday, a slight uptick from Sunday. A spokesperson for the department confirmed to The Epoch Times that some of the figures in its daily report are not correct.
Dr. Fauci calls White House criticism of him bizarre, says 'let's stop this nonsense' and fight the coronavirus. “One of the things that’s part of the problem is the dynamics of the divisiveness that is going on now that it becomes difficult to engage in a dialogue of honest evaluation of what’s gone right and what’s gone wrong,” Fauci told The Atlantic in an interview. “We’ve got to own this, reset this and say OK, let’s stop this nonsense and figure out how can we get our control over this now.” The White House over the weekend distributed a list of statements Fauci made early in the pandemic that turned out to be wrong as understanding of the disease developed, according to media reports. Trump said this week he valued Fauci’s input but did not always agree with him.
Two days ago, I posted a story about Belgium and how their travel system works. (Traffic Light symbols) Now this, a second wave of the coronavirus has started in Europe, according to Belgian epidemiologist Pierre Van Damme, who fears that we “have lost control of the virus.” “In an increasing number of places in Europe the infections are increasing,” Van Damme told VTM. “It seems as if we have lost control again. Until a few weeks ago, we were doing pretty well, and the epidemic was pretty well under control all over Europe,” he added.
Puerto Vallarta is preparing for the possible activation of the "Emergency Button." Authorities from the three levels of government in the region are preparing for the possible activation of the so-called Emergency Button announced by the state governor, Enrique Alfaro RamÃrez. The emergency protocol would be implemented if coronavirus cases continued to increase or the levels of hospital occupation intended for the care of patients with Covid-19 would reach 50%. Activation would stop all economic activities for 14 days, which would generate a significant impact on the community, hence the call to the population to strengthen preventive protocols for health care. Currently, Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara are the two cities in Jalisco with the fastest growing rate of coronavirus infections.
Australia's coronavirus hot spot, the state of Victoria, is reporting a record 317 newly confirmed cases in a day. The tally for Thursday surpassed the state's previous high of 288 on July 10. The previous one-day Australian record was 212 cases set March 28 by New South Wales state during the first peak of the pandemic. New South Wales reported only 10 new cases Thursday. Two men in their 80s died in Victoria in the last 24 hours, bringing the country's death toll for the pandemic to 113. Victoria's government is reducing the number of non-urgent surgeries allowed in hospitals to increase beds available for COVID-19 patients. State officials had planned to restore hospitals to normal medical services by the end of July before infections began to rise in recent weeks.
In national news,
From the "Do ya think?", file sources say Canada and the U.S. have agreed to keep borders closed another 30 days. Canadian and U.S. officials have agreed to keep the border between the two countries closed to non-essential travel until August 21, CTV News has confirmed. Sources say both governments are on the same page with extending the border restriction measures for another month. The ban on discretionary travel was first introduced in March and has been extended each month since. The latest extension was set to expire on July 21.
And, here is why....Nearly 5,000 U.S. citizens tried to enter Canada for shopping, recreation amid pandemic: CBSA. Over 10,000 have been turned away since March 12th. Hello? Uncle Sam et al...COVID-19, maybe you have heard of it? Hello???? Maybe we need to build a wall. (Of course we don't. I'm being sarcastic. But Gee Whiz, c'mon American friends, do us a solid and stay home.)
Alberta, B.C. and Saskatchewan see their COVID-19 cases increase. A second wave in Western Canada? Not quite, but it’s still concerning. Don’t call it a second wave, but COVID-19 cases are starting to creep back up in Western Canada. The increase — particularly cases among young people — is setting off alarm bells for health officials there. Alberta saw 86 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, the most cases in a single day in over two months, and 82 new cases Wednesday. And B.C. and Saskatchewan have both seen uncomfortably larger than usual case rates in recent weeks. More than half of all COVID-19 cases confirmed in Alberta in the past two weeks are people under the age of 40, and 30 per cent of the total new cases haven’t been linked to existing cases.
In Ontario,
As Ontario heads to Stage 3, pressure grows for full-time school plan amid COVID-19. The Ford government's announcement of its Stage 3 reopening measures has ramped up calls from Ontario parents, educators and public health experts for a plan to get kids back to school full-time come September. Much of the heightened attention stems from the government's decision to ease COVID-19 restrictions on bars, allowing them to resume serving customers indoors starting Friday in most regions — and likely across Ontario by the end of the month — with some physical distancing rules in place. The uncertainty over what school will look like in September has been fuelled by what some critics have described as unclear and inconsistent messaging from the government. In mid-June, Education Minister Stephen Lecce told school boards to make plans for three different models of instruction for the fall:
-Full-time in-class teaching with COVID-19 prevention measures in place.
-Full-time remote learning.
-A hybrid that would see half the school population in class each day and half learning online at home.
Lecce then told boards he expected they will start the school year with the hybrid model. The government has also said each school board will decide which model to use in consultation with public health units based on the local risk of infection at the time. In recent days, Lecce and Ford have indicated they prefer to see kids in class full-time.
Ontario is loosening rules for visits at long-term care homes. After months of being almost completely locked down, the province’s long-term care minister says indoor, in-person visits can resume starting July 22. Indoor visits will, however, be limited to two people. Also starting Wednesday, if you’re visiting a resident outdoors, you won’t have to attest that you’ve tested negative for COVID-19 in the past two weeks.
In local news,
An employee at the Oshawa Centre tests positive for COVID-19. It’s not clear when the employee last worked or in which store. The mall operators, Ivanhoe Cambridge, say they’re unable disclose that information. They do say the person is no longer in the mall.
The patio at Chronicle Brewing opens today. Check 'em out! Great people, great beer.
Durham school boards say masks will costs millions – who will pay for it? No specifics from the province on funding for PPE. It could cost Durham's two school boards about $3 million to pay for masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE) for the upcoming school year, but it isn't clear yet who will pick up the tab. It's a big unknown as local boards move toward finalizing 2020-21 budgets and planning for a return to school in the fall.
Sports, Sports, Sports,
Because professional sports are "so concerned" about COVID-19....In their quest to make the best of this unprecedented summer training camp, the Toronto Maple Leafs inadvertently went offside. Rival teams took notice when Toronto brought two referees and two linesmen on the ice during Tuesday’s practice session, and issued complaints to the NHL. While it’s common to see officials used in camps before the season, the teams felt it wasn’t fair for only one to be permitted to do so at a time when everyone is being asked to operate under strict health restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Among those restrictions is an edict that only 20 non-playing staff can be in a team facility at any one time.
Bo Bichette cranked a first-pitch home run in a Blue Jays split squad game. Guerrero Jr. is showing his defensive moves at first base. So, who will end up at 3rd base? We shall see....
Musing,
I can't even imagine what it is like right now to be a parent of school age children.
Ok, I get that some people are very concerned and have pre-existing conditions, which must suck. But, I sure see a lot of Skip the Dishes delivering Starbucks and Tim Horton's as I make my way about.
Even though patios are open, you have to wonder what is going to happen at some restaurants. Yesterday, the patio was partially closed at Frosty John's due to a technicality. (apparently because it was surrounded by 3 walls) Another of my favourite pubs, Bancroft Brew Pub, is in the Stage 3 area. They are not going to open the inside restaurant this summer. Patio only. So, is it lack of staff, or not cost effective? I'm going to ask, next time i'm there.
On this day in history, in 1945, at 5:29:45 a.m., the Manhattan Project comes to an explosive end as the first atom bomb is successfully tested in Alamogordo, New Mexico. In 1995, Amazon officially opens for business as an online bookseller. Within a month, the fledgling retailer had shipped books to all 50 U.S. states and to 45 countries. Founder Jeff Bezos’s motto was “get big fast,” and Seattle-based Amazon eventually morphed into an e-commerce colossus, selling everything from groceries to furniture to live ladybugs, and helping to revolutionize the way people shop. (And then go on to form a triumvirate with Facebook and Google which will eventually own mankind.)
"No change of circumstances can repair a defect of character." (RALPH WALDO EMERSON)
Today is – GET TO KNOW YOUR CUSTOMERS DAY – NATIONAL CORN FRITTERS DAY – NATIONAL PERSONAL CHEF DAY
Bank of Canada unclaimed balances portal
supportontariomade.ca
Here is how to clean your non-medical mask.
Clarington Tourism Businesses and Attractions Directory can be found here.
CERB abuse reporting https://apps.cra-arc.gc.ca/ebci/bscs/l3adz/internet/initial.do?target=login&lang=en&program=qa">can be done here.
To book a COVID-19 test in Durham Region, click here.
Lakeridge Health Mental Health Clinic 905-440-7534 or toll free at 1-833-392-7363 (Monday-Friday 9am-4pm)
Live coronavirus map of Canada: Tracking every case of COVID-19 in the country.
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