The latest news on COVID-19 developments in Canada

The latest news on COVID-19 developments in Canada (all times Eastern):

7:30 p.m.

Yukon is reporting one new case of COVID-19, bringing the territory’s total to 70.

It says the person is a resident of Whitehorse and is linked to previous cases.

The affected individual is self-isolating and recovering at home.

Yukon’s government rolled out its vaccination schedule on Thursday.

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7:25 p.m.

B.C. is reporting 617 new cases of COVID-19 and 18 deaths.

Health Minister Adrian Dix and provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry say they understand the frustrations directed at those not abiding by the COVID-19 guidelines.

But they say the efforts of those following the guidelines are saving lives.

B.C. also reported that 46,259 people have received a COVID-19 vaccine.

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7:15 p.m.

A new variant of COVID-19 that first surfaced in South Africa has been found in Alberta.

The province’s chief medical health officer made the announcement in a tweet.

Dr. Denna Hinshaw says the person is believed to have contracted the illness while travelling and is in quarantine.

She says there is no evidence that the new variant has spread to the community.

The case could be a first in Canada.

Federal officials had said as late as Tuesday that the new variant had yet to be detected in the country.

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5:55 p.m.

Alberta is reporting 1,183 new cases of COVID-19.

There have also been 24 additional deaths linked to the virus.

The government says that starting immediately, health-care workers in medical, surgical and COVID-19 units can get vaccines.

Earlier this week, a letter signed by more than 200 Alberta doctors called for prioritized shots for health-care staff working on dedicated COVID-19 units.

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2:50 p.m.

Saskatchewan is reporting 336 new cases of COVID-19 and seven additional deaths.

There are 180 people in hospital with the virus, including 26 in intensive care.

The province says that so far, 6,015 doses of vaccine have been administered.

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1:50 p.m.

Public health officials in New Brunswick are reporting 18 new cases of COVID-19.

There are now 143 active cases in the province, and no one is in hospital.

There have been 735 cases in the province since the pandemic began.

The province is imposing new rules on travel into New Brunswick in an effort to limit spread of the virus.

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1:40 p.m.

Manitoba is reporting 221 new COVID-19 cases and nine additional deaths. 

Chief public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin says there has been a spike in cases related to gatherings over the holiday period, and is urging people to follow the rules, which include a ban on most social gatherings inside homes.

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1:35 p.m.

The Manitoba government is extending its COVID-19 restrictions for another two weeks.

The province’s current set of rules were scheduled to expire tonight, but chief public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin says more time is needed to keep case numbers and the demand on hospitals in check.

Since mid-November, restaurants and bars have been limited to takeout and delivery services and non-essential stores have had to close except for curbside pickup.

Public gatherings have been limited to five people and most social gatherings inside private homes have been forbidden.

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12:50 p.m.

Maj.-Gen. Dany Fortin, the military commander leading vaccine logistics in Canada, says 171,600 doses of the Moderna vaccine are set to be delivered by the end of next week.

He says 170,000 more are expected during the first week of February, then delivery will begin to scale up, with 250,000 doses by the end of next month and 1.24 million in March.

As for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, 208,650 doses will be delivered to the provinces on a weekly basis for the rest of January, and in February, that will increase to up to 367,000 doses per week.

He says that will mean 1.4 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in February, but Canada is still working to figure out the Pfizer-BioNTech allocations for March.

Fortin also says Pfizer has updated its guidelines and procedures for transporting vaccine doses in a thawed state, which means more options for more delivery sites and smaller amounts.

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12:40 p.m.

Canada’s chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam says more than 735,000 cases of COVID-19 have now been reported in Canada.

That includes 16,759 deaths, according to the latest national figures from the Public Health Agency of Canada.

There are more than 80,250 active cases and over 800 patients across the country are in critical care.

Tam says Canada is actively monitoring variants of the virus and 14 cases have been reported.

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11:30 a.m.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he and the premiers discussed the COVID-19 vaccine rollout during a Thursday call, including ways to fight misinformation about it.

He says more than 124,000 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine were sent to 68 sites across Canada this week and more than 208,000 doses will be delivered weekly for the rest of the month.

He says more than 171,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine will be delivered to provinces and territories by the end of next week.

Trudeau also says the Canadian Armed Forces approved a request Thursday to help Fort Albany First Nation in Ontario respond to a COVID-19 outbreak.

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11:36 a.m.

Nova Scotia is reporting two new cases of COVID-19 today.

Health officials say one was identified in the eastern zone and the other in the central zone, which includes Halifax.

Both cases are related to travel outside the Atlantic region.

The province now has 29 active reported cases of the disease.

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11:23 a.m.

Premier Doug Ford says Ontario’s current lockdown may need to be extended if soaring COVID-19 case rates don’t come down.

He says the province could see more “extreme” measures put in place if residents ignore public heath rules aimed at curbing the spread of the virus.

The premier did not say Friday what additional measures the province is considering or when they could be introduced.

But he says new COVID-19 projections that will be released next week are very concerning.

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11:13 a.m.

Quebec is reporting 2,588 new COVID-19 infections and 45 more deaths attributed to the novel coronavirus.

The province says 14 of the deaths happened the past 24 hours.

Health Minister Christian Dube said today hospitalizations increased by 23 to 1,403 and five more people were in intensive care, for a total of 207.

Dube says the province administered 13,971 doses of vaccine Thursday, for a total of 62,602 doses.

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10:30 a.m.

Ontario is reporting 4,249 new cases of COVID-19 today.

The figure is a new record for daily infections, even factoring in 450 cases from Toronto belatedly included in Friday’s data. 

The new 3,799 cases are reported along with 26 more deaths from the virus.

Health Minister Christine Elliott says the 450 additional cases were counted today due to a data delay from Toronto Public Health. 

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8 a.m.

Ontario hospitals have been told to brace for patient transfers from outside their regions as COVID-19 hospitalizations rise. 

Ontario Health sent a memo to hospital CEOs Thursday saying those with unoccupied adult intensive care beds should reserve one-third of the space for transfers from areas where capacity is maxed out. 

The memo says all hospitals should be ready to accept transfers when directed. 

It cites current projections showing more than 500 critically ill COVID-19 patients in Ontario hospitals by Jan. 24.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 8, 2021.

The Canadian Press