COVID-19 Ottawa:
Ottawa Public Health has confirmed 63 new COVID-19 cases, and one more death related to the virus Tuesday.
4853 cases have been confirmed in the Capital throughout the pandemic, 805 are active, while 3753 are resolved. There have been 295 deaths related to the virus.
Meanwhile,
The amount of new cases has forced Ottawa Public Health to take a different approach when it comes to contact tracing. OPH staff were calling close contacts of those who test positive, which they will continue for more high-risk cases.
Lower risk cases will be directed to a web portal to enter close contacts, and timelines for symptoms and infectious periods. Click here for more details.
COVID-19 Ontario:
Across Ontario there are 548 new cases, and seven new deaths from the virus.
There have been 55,362 cases province-wide during the pandemic, with 46,906 resolved, and 5,469 active.
Meanwhile,
Ontario’s government says in an effort to clear a COVID-19 testing backlog of more than 55,000, it will be sending some tests to the US to be processed.
The news comes as the province’s testing centres move to an appointment-only model. Monday, Premier Doug Ford said a shortage of lab technicians and chemicals needed to process tests was pushing Ontario to its capacity.
OC Transpo Launching Mask Campaign:
OC Transpo has made it clear- you must wear a mask to ride one of its vehicles.
It’s launching the Operation Mask Up campaign on Friday, to remind those who might have forgotten the message. Special Constables will travel across the system during the two week campaign, giving written warnings and a disposable mask to those who forget to wear their own.
Quebec Premier To Apologize to Family of Joyce Echaquan:
Quebec Premier Francois Legault says he will formally apologize to the family of an Indigenous woman who filmed staff insulting her as she lay dying in a hospital bed last week.
In a Twitter post, Legault writes Quebec’s public service failed in its duty to care for Joyce Echaquan, a mother of seven who recorded herself screaming in pain as two hospital staffers told her she would be better off dead.
The apology on behalf of the Quebec government comes on the same day as a private funeral is scheduled for Echaquan in the Atikamekw community of Manawan.
Innu Launch Lawsuit Against Hydro Quebec:
The Innu Nation of Labrador has filed a lawsuit against Hydro-Quebec, seeking $4-billion in compensation.
The Indigenous group is seeking restitution for ecological and cultural damage caused by the damming of the upper Churchill River in the early 1970’s. Innu leaders say the utility illegally took Indigenous land in 1969 when construction started on the Churchill Falls hydroelectric project.
Eddie Van Halen Dies:
Guitar legend Eddie Van Halen has died at the age of 65.
A person close to Van Halen’s family confirmed the rocker died Tuesday from Cancer. Van Halen was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007.