The latest news on COVID-19 developments in Canada

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

7:04 p.m.

Nunavut is reporting four new cases of COVID-19, all in Arviat.  

The territory says it now has a total of 151 active cases of COVID-19.  

The Government of Nunavut says it will spend $1 million towards community food programming, including extra funding for communities affected by the pandemic.  

The government says its message to people is to stay well, stay safe and stay home.

6:49 p.m.

Health experts have warned that COVID-19 cases in Saskatchewan could climb to more than 10,000 by early next month.

The Ministry of Health has released a presentation delivered to physicians at a town-hall meeting last night about the virus’s current spread and possible trajectory.

Information updated to Nov. 20 indicates that, based on the recent average rise in positive tests, the caseload could hit 10,000 in the first week of December if there is no further intervention.

The data also states that as of Monday, the number of active cases and hospitalizations had gone up 400 per cent in the last 30 days. 

It forecasts that in four to six months, acute care demand for COVID-19 patients could account for half of all available beds and the need for intensive care could be five times total capacity.

The Saskatchewan Health Authority says it is working to validate the data and will share more information next week.

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6:34 p.m.

COVID -19 infections keep surging in B.C. with the latest peak at 911 new positive cases.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says there have also been another 11 deaths for a total of 395 deaths since the pandemic started.

There have been three more outbreaks in long-term care or assisted-living facilities, bringing to 54 the number of sites that have outbreaks.

More than 10,000 people are under active health monitoring, while 21,304 people who were infected are considered recovered.

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5:30 p.m.

The Alberta government is empowering 700 more peace officers to enforce COVID-19 public health orders. 

Justice Minister Kaycee Madu says fines for breaking the rules can range from $1,000 to $100,000 in extreme cases that end up in court. 

New rules announced this week include a ban on private social gatherings and capacity limits in stores.

Alberta reported 1,227 new infections on Friday and nine more deaths. 

Chief medical officer Dr. Deena Hinshaw says 405 people are in hospital, including 86 in intensive care. 

She says one way to free up space for the growing number of severely ill COVID-19 patients in hospital is to postpone surgeries.

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3:52 p.m.

Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe has tested negative for COVID-19.

He was tested Monday after eating at a restaurant in Prince Albert where the Saskatchewan Health Authority says someone there was positive with the virus.

Moe’s office says he will remain in isolation at his home in Shellbrook until Sunday, as per the advice from public health.

He will be in Regina Monday for the opening of the legislature and delivery of the throne speech.

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2:54 p.m.

Saskatchewan is reporting four more people have died from COVID-19 and says there are 329 new infections in the province.

Health officials say those who died were 70 and older.

The Ministry of Health reports the seven-day average of daily cases sits at 268.

There are 111 people in hospital and 16 receiving intensive care.

As of Friday, no team sports are allowed in the province and capacity at public venues like churches, movie theatres and casinos is limited to 30 people.

The measures are part of the latest round of restrictions Premier Scott Moe announced earlier in the week to stem the virus’s spread while avoiding a second shutdown of non-essential businesses.

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2:44 p.m.

Manitoba is cracking down on retailers not following public health orders as health officials say COVID-19 is starting to impact vulnerable populations at a higher rate.

Officials announced 344 new cases and 14 more deaths.

Dr. Brent Roussin, the chief provincial public health officer, says there is significant community spread in lower-income neighbourhoods and among the homeless population.

He discouraged people from leaving their homes for any non-essential reason and cautioned retailers against trying to find loopholes in the health orders.

The province issued a $5,000 ticket to a Winnipeg Costco this week for selling non-essential items.

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1:57 p.m.

Nova Scotia is reporting nine new cases of COVID-19, all in the central health zone, which includes Halifax.

The province now has 119 active cases of novel coronavirus.

Health officials say one new case identified today is at Bedford South School, which is a pre-primary to Grade 4 school in the central zone.

Starting today, ongoing voluntary testing is being introduced to monitor, reduce and prevent the spread of COVID-19 in long-term care.

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12:51 p.m.

Newfoundland and Labrador is reporting four new positive cases of COVID-19, for a total of 31 active cases across the province.

One of the individuals is a man in his 60s in the eastern region of the province whose infection is related to another identified case.

A man and a woman in their 50s in the eastern region and a woman in her 40s in the western region have also tested positive. 

The source of those three infections is under investigation.

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12:48 p.m.

New Brunswick is reporting 12 new cases of COVID-19, bringing its number of active cases to 114.

Public Health says seven cases are in the Saint John area, three are in the Moncton region and two are in the Fredericton area.

All three health regions are under the province’s heightened “orange” pandemic alert level.

Dr. Jennifer Russell, the province’s chief medical officer of health, says there should be no non-essential travel in and out of these zones.

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12:10 p.m.

Nunavut’s chief public health officer says four members of the Canadian Red Cross touched down in Arviat today to assist with a COVID-19 outbreak. 

Dr. Michael Patterson says the team will help with isolation and contact tracing in the community of around 2,800 people.

The Government of Nunavut has also announced it will give $1 million to municipalities for community food programs as the territory heads into its second week of a lockdown.

Nunavut is currently under a territory-wide, 14-day lockdown to curb the spread of COVID-19.

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11:40 a.m.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Major-General Dany Fortin has been tapped to lead the Canadian military’s role in coordinating logistics for distributing a COVID-19 vaccine across the country.

Fortin most recently served as the chief of staff for the Canadian Joint Operations Command.

He was also commander of the NATO military training mission in Iraq from November 2018 until last fall.

The announcement follows days of criticism over the Trudeau government’s vaccination strategy and uncertainty about when Canadians might have access to an eventual vaccine.

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11:24

Ontario is reporting 1,855 new cases of COVID-19 in another record-high daily increase.

Twenty more Ontarians have died from the virus. 

Health Minister Christine Elliott says new infections remain concentrated in the Greater Toronto Area, including 517 more cases in Peel Region and 494 in Toronto. 

Provincial data say the seven-day average for infections in the province is 1,489 per day.

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11:13 a.m.

Quebec is reporting 1,269 new COVID-19 infections and 38 more deaths linked virus, including nine that occurred in the past 24 hours.

Health officials said today hospitalizations decreased by six, to 669, and 90 people were in intensive care, the same number as the day prior.

The province says 1,236 more people recovered from COVID-19, for a total of 119,727 recoveries.

Quebec has reported 138,163 COVID-19 cases and 6,984 deaths linked to the virus since the beginning of the pandemic.

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11:02 a.m.

Nunavut is announcing four new cases of COVID-19, all in the community of Arviat. 

This brings Arviat’s total number of cases to 119. 

Three more cases in Arviat and Rankin Inlet are now considered recovered. 

There are 151 active cases of COVID-19 in Nunavut.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 27, 2020.

The Canadian Press