“The end is certainly in sight, but we are not there yet. This third wave is more serious and we have to wait a few more weeks to make sure we can flatten that curve, drop those numbers again, an opportunity for vaccines Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said at a press conference in Ottawa on Friday.
The situation is most dire in Ontario, Canada’s most populous province, where officials say the province is close to third wave “ worst case scenario ” projections. The county came dangerously close on Friday to break a record for a single day of increase in cases and has already set a record this week for intensive care unit admissions involving Covid-19.
“We’re seeing more and more young people being hospitalized with Covid-19. So for young people: there are more contagious and more serious variants out there, even if you’re younger you can get sick very, very quickly,” Trudeau said.
Across the country, Canadian health officials say IC admissions are up more than 20% in the past week alone as all of Canada’s most populous provinces face a third wave more threatening to the health care system than the last two.
“I can understand the frustration, fear and concern that Canadians across the country are feeling at seeing these numbers, I share it. I think we all recognize that we don’t want to be in this third wave, but we are here , ”said Trudeau.
The rollout of vaccines will not slow new growth in cases
Although Canada broke a record for vaccine doses administered this week, Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, said vaccine roll-out will not slow the rapid growth in cases where more infectious variants are spreading across the country.
“Right now, my concern is … the ICUs are getting full, not just hospitalizations, because there is an absolute limit to the ICU capacity, not necessarily because of equipment, but because of people,” Tam said at Friday’s press conference.
The province of Ontario, including Canada’s most populous city, Toronto, has issued a county-wide residence warrant for at least four weeks as of Thursday as the third wave threatens to overwhelm hospitals. However, restrictions have reduced the number of new infections only moderately, despite cities like Toronto having been in some form of incarceration since late November.
Ontario Prime Minister Doug Ford has imposed the province’s third state of emergency since the start of the pandemic. Non-essential stores, including shopping centers, will be close to personal stores, with only supermarkets, pharmacies and garden centers open to the public.
Dining rooms at restaurants, personal care and gyms had already been closed across the county as last week the provincial official closed many places but dropped an order to stay home.
Toronto and the adjacent Peel region brought students to virtual learning earlier this week, just before a previously scheduled spring break. The Ford government says its priority is to keep schools open across the province.
Outside Canada’s Atlantic provinces, the third wave of the pandemic is putting pressure on hospitals in most of the country.
In a statement released Wednesday, Tam underlined the threat that variants will spread and lead to more infections and serious illness, especially among younger Canadians.
While COVID-19 continues to affect people of all ages in Canada, infection rates are highest among the 20 to 39 age group. We also see an increasing number of adults under 60 being treated for COVID-19 in the hospital, including in intensive care units, ”said Tam.