Timeline for confirmed cases of the new coronavirus in Canada

TORONTO — Health officials in British Columbia believe there is a new case of the novel coronavirus in the province and are waiting for results to be confirmed by the National Microbiology Lab in Winnipeg. There have been four confirmed cases of the new coronavirus in Canada — three in Ontario and one in B.C. Here is a timeline of Canadian cases.

Jan. 25, 2020: A man in his 50s who arrived in Toronto from Wuhan, China, the epicentre of the outbreak, becomes the first “presumptive” case of the new coronavirus in Canada. The man called 911 as soon as he got sick with relatively minor symptoms and was placed in isolation in Toronto’s Sunnybrook Hospital.

Jan. 26, 2020: The wife of the Toronto man who was Canada’s first “presumptive” case of the new coronavirus becomes the second presumptive case. The woman is kept in home isolation.

Jan. 27, 2020: The National Microbiology Lab in Winnipeg confirms that a man in quarantine in Sunnybrook Hospital is Canada’s first documented case of the new coronavirus.

Jan 28, 2020: Health authorities confirm Canada’s second case of the novel coronavirus. The woman had recently travelled to Wuhan with her husband, who was the first case confirmed in Canada.

Jan 28, 2020: Health officials in British Columbia say a man in his 40s is presumed to have the new coronavirus and is doing well as he recovers at his Vancouver home. B.C.’s health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry, says the man often works in China and voluntarily isolated himself upon returning to Canada.

Jan. 28, 2020: The presumed case of the new strain of coronavirus in B.C. is confirmed by the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg.

Jan. 31, 2020: Toronto man hospitalized with the novel coronavirus is well enough to go home. Sunnybrook Hospital says he’ll continue to recover at home, where his wife is also in self-isolation.

Jan. 31, 2020: Ontario’s third case of the new coronavirus is confirmed. The patient, a woman in her 20s, had travelled to the affected area in China. The London university student initially tested negative for the virus, but a subsequent test at the national lab in Winnipeg was positive. Health officials say her symptoms are minor.

Feb. 4, 2020: Henry says officials believe a second case of the new coronavirus has been confirmed in B.C. It is a presumptive confirmed case until tests are completed by the national lab. Henry says the woman had family visiting from China’s Hubei province and she is in isolation at her home.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 4, 2020.

The Canadian Press