A torrent of hail strikes a backyard deck in Niagara-on-the-lake, ON.
Serious differences persist between the United States and Iran over how they might resume compliance with the 2015 Iran nuclear deal despite making some progress in their latest indirect talks in Vienna, a senior U.S. official said on Wednesday. The talks were likely to require several rounds, their outcome remained uncertain and they were not near conclusion, the senior U.S. State Department official told reporters in a conference call. The main differences are over what sanctions the United States will need to remove and what steps Iran will need to take to resume its obligations to curb its nuclear program, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Citing an expected increase in COVID-19 vaccine shipments, the Saskatchewan government is planning to offer doses to residents aged 44 and up through booked appointments beginning this Thursday. Then, by mid-next week, people aged 40 and up will become eligible and more front-line workers will be offered doses too, Premier Scott Moe said Tuesday. Moe said the province's plan is pegged on vaccine shipments picking up in early May, pointing in particular to a boost in Pfizer-BioNTech shipments touted earlier this week by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. In the meantime, Moe said, "we do have a difficult 10 days ahead of us." Saskatchewan is expected to receive about 31,000 doses of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine this week — a figure officials have previously said provides about three days' worth of supply. Meanwhile, the province and other parts of the country have faced several Moderna vaccine delays in recent weeks. "We're hoping for a Moderna schedule that will include increases as well," Moe said. "We'd also like to see more AstraZeneca arrive." Supply crunch delays 9,000 appointments The current supply crunch has forced the province to reschedule around 9,000 appointments and temporarily close its Saskatoon and Regina drive-thrus, Moe said. It's hoped the increase in vaccine shipments in early May will allow Saskatchewan to ramp up its delivery of vaccines through pharmacies — an effort set to begin on April 26 — and potentially allow the province to reopen those shuttered drive-thrus, Moe said. Saskatchewan has been disappointed before when federal shipments of COVID-19 vaccines have fallen short of initial estimates. Moe and his ministers have frequently blamed the Trudeau government and its shipment schedules for any slowing in the pace of vaccinations in Saskatchewan, which has led all provinces in inoculations for much of 2021. Moe's announcement Tuesday about opening up vaccines to younger people and more front-line workers came despite those earlier frustrations. Once people aged 40 to 43 are able to book vaccine appointments next week, "We're then going to prioritize all remaining police officers and firefighters, front-line health care workers, corrections officers, border crossing officers, public health inspectors as well as our teachers and educators and others that are working in schools," Moe said. Eligible workers will need proof of employment before going to a clinic, according to a release. Anyone with those vocations currently eligible for a vaccine should immediately book an appointment, Moe added. Moe's government has been under pressure in recent weeks to add more groups of front-line workers, including teachers, to Saskatchewan's vaccine priority list. The premier looked ahead to a time when all adults aged 18 and over will be able to get a shot. "We'll all have equal priority at that point," he said, adding that the province's previously-stated hope of offering first doses to all people aged 18 and over by mid-May remains "a very ambitious target."
An influential Canadian doctor and top adviser to the World Health Organization has come under fire from international experts for his controversial comments downplaying the risk of airborne spread of the coronavirus. Dr. John Conly, an infectious diseases physician and professor of medicine at the University of Calgary, not only denied that aerosol transmission is a primary route of transmission, despite mounting evidence to the contrary, but also said that N95 masks can cause "harms" — including acne. "Any time you look at benefits, you need to look at harms, of which there are many harms with N95s — and I think to ignore them you are at your peril," Conly told a panel discussion at the University of Calgary on April 9 on the role of airborne transmission in the COVID-19 pandemic. "There is acne, also issues with eczema, conjunctivitis, CO2 retention; there has been decreased O2 concentrations in pregnant women — many side-effects to this." His comments on oxygen and carbon dioxide have been largely discredited, with a 2014 study in the American Journal of Infection Control showing no significant differences in levels between pregnant and non-pregnant women wearing N95 masks. The WHO's position is there's a possibility that aerosol transmission can lead to outbreaks of COVID-19 in certain situations. A change in stance from the WHO on aerosol transmission as the main driver would have huge implications on the need for increased air ventilation and better personal protective equipment for health-care workers and essential workers around the world. Conly is one of Canada's most experienced infectious diseases experts who was once head of the department of medicine at the University of Calgary and the medical director for infection prevention at Alberta Health Services. He also holds considerable global influence in the pandemic as the chair of the WHO's Infection Prevention and Control Research and Development Expert Group for COVID-19, which makes key decisions on the research that informs the WHO's recommendations. "We absolutely know there are situational airborne settings," he added during the panel discussion. "But to be able to say that it is the only and predominant means, I think we need better scientific evidence." Conley carries 'a lot of weight' with WHO The WHO has been criticized in the past for its reluctance to acknowledge aerosol transmission — or microscopic airborne particles — as a primary driver of the pandemic, and experts say Conly is at the heart of the issue within the organization. "Frankly, I think he just can't admit he's wrong," said Linsey Marr, one of the top aerosol scientists in the world and an expert on the airborne transmission of viruses at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va. "He does carry a lot of weight with WHO, and unfortunately I think his thinking is still stuck in what we knew 20 or 30 years ago and hasn't updated with what we've learned since then — and especially what we've learned over the past year." WATCH | Scientists suggest coronavirus is airborne, ask WHO to change recommendations: Global acknowledgement of airborne spread The United Nations agency also came under fire in July after 239 scientists from 32 countries wrote an open letter calling on it to update its messaging on the risk of airborne transmission of the coronavirus. The WHO amended its guidelines days after the letter and acknowledged the possibility that aerosols can lead to outbreaks of COVID-19 in places such as choir practices, restaurants and fitness classes. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated its guidelines in early October to include that COVID-19 can sometimes be spread by airborne transmission, after mistakenly posting and later removing a draft version of guidelines in late September. The CDC also updated its guidelines to say the risk of COVID-19 infection from surfaces is now officially considered low — meaning disinfecting groceries, wiping down packages and cordoning off playgrounds are likely unnecessary. The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) then quietly updated its guidance without notice in November, weeks after other countries and international health organizations, making mention of the risk of aerosol transmission for the first time. PHAC went another step further and released further recommendations for Canadians on April 12 aimed at reducing the spread of aerosol transmission of COVID-19 and the need for adequate ventilation and air filtration to reduce the number of virus particles in the air. An update to Public Health Agency of Canada guidelines on the risk of aerosol transmission came after Dr. Theresa Tam, the country's chief public health officer, recommended the use of three-layer non-medical masks in November to prevent the spread of COVID-19.(Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press) Science 'very strong' in favour of aerosol transmission "The science is very strong to support aerosol transmission," said infectious diseases specialist and medical microbiologist Dr. Raymond Tellier, who is also an associate medical professor at McGill University in Montreal. "We keep having example after example, and the objections are becoming increasingly unconvincing." After the University of Calgary panel discussion, CBC News spoke to Conly, who said he was just one voice among many at the WHO. He stressed that the way the virus transmits is "very complex" and that the "majority" of transmission occurs through "close contact." WATCH | Should Canadians be wearing N95-style masks?: "Social distancing, or physical distancing as some call it, and hygiene, cleaning and disinfection of surfaces. That's where our focus should be," he said. "The science about how it's transmitted and where it goes, it will get itself sorted out." Conly was an author of a recent preprint study funded by the WHO that refuted the notion of aerosols as a primary mode of spread for the virus because "the lack of recoverable viral culture samples" from the air "prevents firm conclusions on airborne transmission." But in response to that study, which has not yet been peer-reviewed, a group of researchers — including Canadian epidemiologist Dr. David Fisman — published a comment in The Lancet that called into question its conclusion. The researchers present 10 reasons why they conclude the virus that causes COVID-19 is primarily transmitted through the air, including superspreading events, long-range infections, the higher risk of indoor transmission and the fact that virus particles have been detected in the air. The paper concludes that casting doubt on airborne transmission of the virus amounts to "scientific error" and that there is "consistent, strong evidence" that it spreads via aerosols, which are "likely to be dominant" over droplet and surface transmission. "If you don't include airborne, how are we in the middle of the global pandemic?" said Kimberly Prather, an atmospheric chemist and aerosol scientist at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego, Calif. WATCH | Being outdoors reduces, doesn't eliminate, COVID-19 risk, experts say: "How do you explain outdoor versus indoor? How do you explain superspreader events? How do you explain everyone that shares the room and never touches each other or gets close to each other gets infected? I mean, you can't." Prather, who went head-to-head with Conly at the University of Calgary panel earlier this month in favour of airborne transmission, was one of the co-authors of The Lancet comment that argued against his preprint article and a signatory of the letter to the WHO in July. "The evidence just keeps coming in every day ... there has not been a single paper that has pointed out why it isn't aerosols," she said. "The fact that the [WHO] is not just shouting that from the mountaintops to save lives is, quite frankly, disappointing." Kimberly Prather, an atmospheric chemist and aerosol scientist at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, says the evidence on aerosol transmission continues to grow and that Conly's reluctance to acknowledge it, combined with his influence at the WHO, has implications for global public health guidelines.(Ben Nelms/CBC) A recent study published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed that a singer at a church in Australia in July was able to infect several others from a distance of more than 15 metres indoors, while a second CDC study found an infection occurred in a New Zealand quarantine hotel in September after an exposure time of less than a minute in an open doorway. And a recent outbreak at a gym in Quebec City where physical distancing and mask use were not enforced has been linked to more than 500 COVID-19 cases and become one of the largest recorded superspreading events in Canada. Prather said Conly's reluctance to acknowledge aerosol transmission as a main driver of the pandemic, combined with his influence at the WHO, has implications for global public health guidelines — such as for hospitals or schools. "He has tremendous power," she said. "What else is it going to take? Because just the amount of evidence in this short of a time period is incredible."
BILLINGS, Mont. — Grizzly bears are part of life in the gateway communities around Yellowstone National Park, and backcountry snowmobile guide Charles “Carl” Mock knew well the risks that come with working, hiking and fishing among the fear-inspiring carnivores, his friends said. Mock was killed after being mauled by a 400-plus pound (181-plus kilogram) male grizzly while fishing alone at a favourite spot on Montana's Madison River, where it spills out of the park and into forested land that bears wander in search of food. The bear had a moose carcass stashed nearby and wildlife officials say it likely attacked Mock to defend the food. The grizzly was shot after charging at a group of seven game wardens and bear specialists who returned the next day. Bear spray residue found on Mock's clothing suggested he tried to ward off last week's attack using a canister of the Mace-like deterrent, considered an essential item in the backcountry. He usually carried a pistol, too, but wasn't on the day he was killed just a few miles north of the small town of West Yellowstone where he lived, according to two friends. While some on social media questioned the inherent perils of such a lifestyle in the wake of Mock's death, those who knew him said he accepted the risk as a trade-off for time spent in a wilderness teeming with elk, deer, wolves and other wildlife. “People don't understand that for us who live here, that's what we do every day,” said Scott Riley, who said he fished, hunted, hiked and kayaked numerous times with Mock over the past decade. West Yellowstone has just over 900 full time residents but gets throngs of summer tourists at one of the main entrances to the park. “We had a bear in town two nights after Carl was mauled. It's not like we're just running around in the forest tempting them. They are everywhere," said Riley, who manages a snowmobile dealership in West Yellowstone. Mock, 40, managed to call 911 following the mauling and was found by rescuers propped against a tree with the cannister of bear spray in one hand, his father, Chuck Mock, told the Billing Gazette. His other hand had been “chomped off” as he tried to protect himself. One of the animal's teeth punctured his skull and Mock died two days later in an Idaho hospital after undergoing extensive surgery. The Yellowstone region that spans portions of Montana, Idaho and Wyoming has more than 700 bears. Fatal attacks on humans are rare but have increased in recent decades as the grizzly population grew and more people moved into rural areas near bear habitat. Since 2010, grizzlies in the Yellowstone region killed eight people including Mock. The last fatality around West Yellowstone that town Mayor Jerry Johnson could recall happened in 1983, when a 600-pound (272-kilogram) bear dragged a Wisconsin man from his tent and killed at the Rainbow Point campground north of town. Grizzlies are protected under federal law outside Alaska. Members of the region’s congressional delegation have introduced legislation to lift protections and allow grizzly hunting. Mock had been “in awe” of Yellowstone from a young age, according to his father, and moved from Idaho to West Yellowstone about 10 years ago. For the past five years he worked as a guide for a snowmobile touring company owned by Johnson. He was known for being helpful to friends and his love of outdoor adventure, Johnson said. A community memorial service for Mock, is scheduled for Saturday at West Yellowstone's Union Pacific Dining Lodge. His relatives will hold a private funeral, Johnson said. Riley said he and Mock came upon bears in the wild numerous times. Sometimes a grizzly would make a bluff charge, running at Riley and Mock but always backing down before last week's attack. “I've held my bear spray 100 times but never had to use it,” Riley said. “What happened to Carl could happen to anybody that walks into these forests at any given time ... I would say if the forest kills me, the forest kills me." Matthew Brown, The Associated Press
Students and seasonal workers who have returned to Yukon and are self-isolating won't have to wait to be vaccinated against COVID-19, says Yukon's chief medical officer. In his weekly news conference on Wednesday, Dr. Brendan Hanley said health officials have figured out a way to allow those in mandatory self-isolation to get a shot. Right now, most people arriving in Yukon are required to self-isolate for 14 days. Hanley said on Wednesday that returning students or seasonal workers will be allowed to leave isolation "for a short period of time" to attend a vaccination clinic. Before their shot, however, they'll be tested. Only those who test negative will then get a shot, he said. They'll then have to go back into self-isolation for the remainder of the 14-day period. "This is certainly not a get-out-of-self-isolation-early card," Hanley said. He also said health officials are now recommending that anybody sharing accommodation with someone in self-isolation should also be isolating. However, they are not required to do so by Yukon's Civil Emergency Measures Act (CEMA). "We know it is hard to keep apart unless completely separated," Hanley said, explaining his new recommendation. "And with the spread of variants, we need to be extra-cautious." Watch Wednesday's news conference here: 2 active cases 'close to recovery' Also on Wednesday, health officials announced one new case reported in Yukon, but said the person was never infectious in the territory. The affected person is an adult and the case is associated with international travel, according to a news release. The person tested positive on return to Canada, and completed self-isolation before arriving in Yukon. Officials say the person is now recovered, and there were no exposures in the territory. The case is the territory's 78th. Yukon's 77th case of COVID-19 was announced on Monday. Officials said the affected person is an adult in rural Yukon, and the case was connected to travel within Canada. An exposure notice was also issued for a restaurant in Watson Lake. On Wednesday, Hanley said that person was now recovered. Two other cases, in Whitehorse, were announced last week and health officials said they involved the P1 variant of concern. Hanley said on Wednesday that those people are "close to recovery." The territory's online vaccine tracker, updated Monday, says 71 per cent of eligible Yukoners had received their first shot of the Moderna vaccine, and 59 per cent had received their second shot. Vaccination rates in Yukon are 'moving up and that's great. And I think we just need to keep that upward movement going,' said Hanley.(Steve Silva/CBC) Hanley said Yukon is doing relatively well, but is still at risk of importing variants of concern. He says the territory is not immune to what's happening elsewhere in Canada. "It is hard to predict the next few weeks, but waves do come to an end and vaccine uptake is really starting to take off in the rest of Canada. And that is good news for us." He said younger adults in Yukon still lag when it comes to getting vaccinated — though the numbers are still climbing, he said. "It's moving up and that's great. And I think we just need to keep that upward movement going," he said. "If we can continue to get our younger people up to the same levels as our older citizens, we will be well-positioned to have great summer where we can ease up on many of our current restrictions." He would not say what restrictions might be eased, or when. Asked about the N.W.T.'s announcement on Wednesday that it was changing self-isolation requirements for vaccinated adults, Hanley said he was happy to see changes being made "where they can be," but would not say whether Yukon would make similar changes.
In the mythology of Quebec nationalists, the "night of the long knives" refers to an all-night bargaining session at Ottawa's Château Laurier hotel during the constitutional talks in the fall of 1981. That night, provincial representatives reached an agreement among themselves to support Pierre Trudeau's wide-ranging reforms. Then Quebec premier René Lévesque, for reasons that are still debated, was not present and felt betrayed, and ultimately refused to sign the Constitution. But it was at that meeting that the provinces made their support for the reforms contingent on the inclusion of a "notwithstanding clause." Leery about losing autonomy to a federal charter of fundamental rights, the provinces extracted a compromise from Trudeau allowing them to override parts of the charter for renewable, five-year periods. Jean Chrétien, who was then Trudeau's justice minister, downplayed its importance at the time. It would only be used to "correct absurd situations," he told the House of Commons. Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau stretches to shake hands with Quebec Premier René Lévesque at the start of the meeting of the first ministers in Ottawa Nov. 2, 1981.At this set of talks, the provinces made their support for constitutional reforms contingent on the inclusion of a 'notwithstanding clause.'(Bill Grimshaw/The Canadian Press) Indeed, at one point in the 1990s, the clause was so little used that some jurists wondered if it was, effectively, dead. Since then, however, it has been invoked occasionally. Fast forward to June 2019. Quebec's nationalist premier, François Legault, passes his government's flagship piece of legislation, a ban on religious symbols in large parts of the civil service. Muslim women, in particular, feel targeted. Civil rights groups accuse the government of discriminating against minorities. But in passing the Laicity Act, Legault invoked the notwithstanding clause, hoping to protect it from claims the ban violated rights now protected by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. And if the law, cherished by Quebec's nationalists, is mostly still intact today, it is largely because of the notwithstanding clause — that bargain agreed to behind Lévesque's back. Legally violating rights, or saved by the clause On Tuesday, a Quebec Superior Court judge ruled on the first set of constitutional challenges launched against the Laicity Act, widely known as Bill or Law 21. In a 240-page decision, Justice Marc-André Blanchard upheld most of the provisions that ban public employees such as teachers, police officers and prosecutors from wearing religious symbols at work. But at several points, Blanchard also says the law violates the basic rights of religious minorities in the province. "[Bill 21] brings about serious and negative consequences for all people who display religious symbols in public," he writes at one point. WATCH | A Sikh teacher reacts to the ruling: Elsewhere he notes, "the evidence undoubtedly shows that the effects of Law 21 will be felt negatively above all by Muslim women," adding that it violates both their religious freedom and freedom of expression. The notwithstanding clause, however, prevents the plaintiffs from appealing to those charter rights that protect religious freedom, freedom of expression or gender equality. As Blanchard explains, it doesn't matter what rights are overridden by the clause. All that matters is that proper procedure is followed when invoking it, which Quebec did. Among supporters of the law, there was a sense that had it not been for the clause, the ban on religious symbols would have been declared unconstitutional. "Thanks to the notwithstanding clause, it's the choice of legislator that won out. It's a victory for the notwithstanding clause," said Guillaume Rousseau, a law professor who advised the government on the legislation and represented a pro-secularism group at the trial. The one, albeit significant, set-back for the pro-Bill 21 side was Blanchard's decision to exempt English schools from the religious symbols ban, citing their minority language education rights. Those rights, Section 23 in the charter, can't be overridden by the notwithstanding clause. Law at 'all costs' Blanchard deferred to legal precedent in his interpretation of what the notwithstanding clause permits. But he also underscored, at length, his reservations about how the Quebec government used it in this case. In the past, the notwithstanding clause has usually been invoked in cases where a provincial legislature disagreed with a court decision, and a limited number of charter rights were overridden. Bill 21, however, invoked the clause preemptively, meaning a court is blocked from first determining if a basic rights violation has occurred. And the law also contains a blanket suspension of all rights in Sections Two and Seven to 15 in the charter, even those rights that have nothing to do with secularism. Blanchard calls this "troubling," pointing out the law suspends things like the right to an attorney and attorney-client privilege. In seeking to ensure the law applies at "all costs," the government displayed an "indifference toward the rights and liberties of those affected," he said. Some readers of the decision were left feeling that Blanchard exposed, whether deliberately or not, the far-reaching consequences of the notwithstanding clause. In passing the Laicity Act, Premier François Legault invoked the notwithstanding clause, hoping to protect it from claims the ban violated rights now protected by the charter.(Paul Chiasson/The Canadian Press) "He seems to invite … closing some of the holes that he points to in his decision," said Louis-Philippe Lampron, a professor of constitutional law at the Université Laval. Robert Leckey, a constitutional expert and dean of the McGill law faculty, said the decision highlights the fragility of minority rights in Canada when "a legislature doesn't have the instinct to check its power." He said adding limits to the use of the notwithstanding clause wouldn't necessarily require a constitutional amendment. Courts could, for example, be more willing to issue injunctions against laws that use the notwithstanding clause too broadly. But altering the scope of the notwithstanding clause would endanger that bargain at the heart of the constitutional compromise struck in 1981, said Patrick Taillon, a law professor at Université Laval who testified for the Quebec government at the Bill 21 trial. At its core, that bargain was about giving elected legislators — not judges — the final say over how society should be governed. "We might be in an era when public trust in politicians is eroding. But what's the alternative? The judge is always right in all circumstances," Taillon said. "We have to think twice about that."
HALIFAX — Nova Scotia's COVID-19 case count continued to climb Wednesday as the province announced 25 new infections one day after banning non-essential travel from most of the rest of Canada. The province has identified 64 cases since last Friday and now has a total of 79 active infections. The steady rise prompted Premier Iain Rankin to step in and cancel next month's women's world hockey championship slated for Halifax and Truro. It is the second year in a row the pandemic has scuttled the tournament. The move came a day after chief medical officer of health Dr. Robert Strang defended the event as not posing a significant health risk to Nova Scotians. "I sincerely regret the short notice, but the rapidly changing environment dictates this decision in the interest of the safety of Nova Scotians and participants," Rankin said in a statement. Nineteen of Wednesday's cases were identified in the Halifax area, with four related to travel outside of Atlantic Canada, nine close contacts of previously reported cases, and six under investigation. One of the cases under investigation is a staff member at the Ocean View Continuing Care Centre in Eastern Passage, where all residents are being isolated and cared for in their rooms as a precaution and the facility is closed to visitors and designated caregivers. An investigation was also being conducted into a case connected to Joseph Giles Elementary school in Dartmouth. Officials said the school would remain closed to students who would learn from home until Tuesday while cleaning takes place. Officials said three of the other cases were in the northern zone with one related to international travel and two under investigation. The remaining three were in the eastern zone, all linked to domestic travel outside Atlantic Canada. "We are seeing a concerning rise in cases," chief medical officer of health Dr. Robert Strang said in a news release. Strang reiterated that health officials are seeing early signs of community spread in and around Halifax. "We're asking residents of these areas to closely follow public health measures and go get tested for COVID-19," he said. The heightened concern comes as new figures indicate Nova Scotia's COVID-19 vaccination program has picked up its pace after an admitted slow start. Tracey Barbrick, the associate deputy minister for Nova Scotia's vaccine strategy, said in an interview Wednesday the province administered 14,742 doses on Tuesday — the highest one-day total since the start of the campaign. Barbrick said 23.6 per cent of people who are eligible for a shot had received at least one dose, just below the national average of about 25 per cent. "As of yesterday us and New Brunswick were tied with vaccinating at the fastest rate in the country," she said. But Nova Scotia is still roughly one week behind other provinces because it held back about 25,000 doses for booster shots before changing its strategy to a four-month interval between first and second doses. Barbrick said the province also took time to develop a centralized booking system which meant it was "a little later out of the gate." She said a recent increase in supply of vaccine allowed the province to move from administering 11,000 doses the week of March 14 to an expected 65,000 doses this week. And despite an interruption in the supply of the Moderna vaccine, Rankin has said the province remains on track to reach its goal of giving all Nova Scotians who want vaccine at least one shot by the end of June. Barbrick said the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine had been the only supply with any relative certainty, and it's expected continued shipments of that vaccine would help the province reach its end-of-June target. "Right now with Pfizer alone we are darn close," said Barbrick. "If we get a little bit more of something else it might mean we can move even quicker." As of Wednesday, the province had also administered about half of its Oxford-AstraZeneca allotment of 60,000 vaccine doses for people aged 55-64. This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 21, 2021. Keith Doucette, The Canadian Press
Toronto reached a grim new high Wednesday, reporting 1,010 people with COVID-19 are in hospital and 194 are in the intensive care unit. "Today's numbers reflect the seriousness of the situation in which we find ourselves," said Medical Officer of Health Dr. Eileen de Villa, warning the city is on track to reach the milestone of 3,000 COVID-19 related deaths. The city reported 27 more deaths Wednesday, bringing the total to 2,970, along with 1,302 new cases of the virus. Toronto will ramp up vaccinations further in the 13 "hottest" of the hot spot neighbourhoods, as part of a "sprint strategy" Mayor John Toronto said on Wednesday. Tory said Toronto will be "significantly" increasing vaccination capacity at city-run clinics by 20 to 25 per cent. "We have dramatically increased available capacity but we don't have the supply," the mayor said. A woman is vaccinated with a dose of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine at a pop-up vaccine clinic in Toronto's Jane and Finch neighbourhood, in the M3N postal code, on Saturday, April 17, 2021. Despite rates of COVID-19 deaths and hospitalizations far exceeding other areas of the city, residents of the M3N postal code continue to struggle with the lowest vaccination rates in Toronto. (Cole Burston/The Canadian Press) The city expects that situation to change in about three weeks when the province increases supply of doses to more than 60,000 doses per week, up from 56,000. To match supply forecasts, 231,000 additional appointment spots will soon be available for May 10 through June 6, said Toronto Fire Chief and head of Emergency Management Matthew Pegg. As the city expands its mobile vaccination clinic efforts, it's enlisting the help of paramedics and firefighters, Pegg said. "This will further assist some of our most vulnerable residents, such as those experiencing homelessness, those who rely on shelters and drop-in centres and those living outdoors," Pegg said. The city vaccinated over 25,600 people yesterday, with thousands of doses administered at pop-up and mobile clinics in hot spot neighourhoods, according to Toronto Public Health, noting only a small number of appointments are available at city-run clinics for the next two weeks. A pop-up clinic for residents 18 years and older will run at Jane and Finch for postal codes M3L, M3N and M3M, the city said. A mobile clinic will operate in postal code M3N. Doctors say a record number of patients in the Toronto area are being transferred to other regions as the third wave puts incredible strain on the health-care system. There's concern about what would happen if there's a further spike in COVID-19 cases. "I am very concerned about the potential for us to not be able to meet the demand of the pace at which patients will present through the front doors of our hospital," said Dr. Andrew Healey, chief of emergency services and an emergency and critical care doctor at William Osler Health System, a network of hospitals in Toronto and Peel Region. "We are dangerously close to not being able to provide typical care in typical spaces to the patients who present with COVID-19 infection and others in our hospital system."
NDP leader Jagmeet Singh repeated his call Wednesday for the prime minister to invoke the Emergencies Act in Ontario to get the needed vaccines for the province as it continues to face a dire situation from the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Singh said he’s calling for a public welfare emergency to be declared in Ontario as hospitals are flooded with COVID-19 patients.
RCMP have charged four people in connection with the murder of Damian Moosomin after an 11-month investigation. Moosomin, 20, was found dead in the backyard of a home in North Battleford on May 16, 2020, five days after he was reported missing. Tye Patridge of the Moosomin First Nation has been charged with first-degree murder. Jannay Blackbird of the Saulteaux First Nation is charged with second-degree murder. Stormy Wapass-Semaganis of Edmonton and Melissa Semaganis of the Sweetgrass First Nation are facing charges of accessory after the fact to a murder. Patridge, Blackbird and Semaganis are scheduled to appear in North Battleford Provincial Court on April 27. Wapass-Semaganis is scheduled to appear in North Battleford Provincial Court on April 28.
Nearly three-quarters of Health PEI's 6,000 staff members have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, Prince Edward Island's premier said in the legislature Wednesday. A Summerside native who's managing a health-care team at a west Toronto hospital says fears of not being able to cope with COVID-19 patients were not realized last year, but the third wave of the pandemic is proving they were justified. COVID-19 logistics have led to too many moves for Queen Elizabeth Hospital patients living with dementia, says a Liberal MLA. The North Shore community of North Rustico is cancelling most of its major Canada Day events this year to comply with public health restrictions. This year's UPEI nursing graduates have a lot of options to choose from as they enter the workforce. Michael MacKinnon, who is about to graduate from the UPEI nursing program, has accepted a job at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital's Unit 1.(Submitted by Michael MacKinnon) Nurses in Atlantic Canada are being asked to help as the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic hits Ontario hard — and some on P.E.I. are starting to step forward. The child who was hospitalized due to COVID-19 has been discharged, the Chief Public Health Office confirmed. It also reported one new case of COVID-19. The 2021 edition of the Cavendish Beach Music Festival has been cancelled, after organizers decided public health requirements would still not permit a large-scale event by the time the July 9-11 weekend rolled around. About 25,000 people attended the Cavendish Beach Music Festival in 2019.(Tracy Lightfoot/CBC) Nova Scotia is placing new restrictions on who can travel to the province, with exceptions for residents of Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador, where COVID-19 case counts are low. A P.E.I. tourism operator is concerned that the federal budget is decreasing support for the industry. Liberal MP Sean Casey says the support will be there if it is needed. The Island has seen 174 cases of COVID-19. Thirteen are considered active. There have been two hospitalizations and no deaths. Elsewhere in the Atlantic region Wednesday: Also in the news These Islanders are currently eligible for a vaccine People over 50. Frontline workers over the age of 40 who interact with the public and cannot work virtually. People providing health care services to the public — including optometrists, pharmacists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists — and their support staff. Non-frontline health care workers needed to maintain health care system capacity Firefighters, police officers, power-line workers. Residents and staff of long-term care homes. Adults living in Indigenous communities. Residents and staff of shared living facilities. Truck drivers and other rotational workers. You can find more information about how to get a vaccine here. Further resources Reminder about symptoms The symptoms of COVID-19 can include: Fever. Cough or worsening of a previous cough. Possible loss of taste and/or smell. Sore throat. New or worsening fatigue. Headache. Shortness of breath. Runny nose. More from CBC P.E.I.
A PC motion to investigate Newfoundland and Labrador's wildly controversial election —and for Chief Electoral Officer Bruce Chaulk to be suspended while it would have been held — went down to defeat late Wednesday afternoon in the House of Assembly. The motion, moved by Conception Bay South MHA Barry Petten, was rejected by a vote of 21-17. Petten wanted an independent investigator appointed "to determine what went wrong" during an election that took 10 weeks to complete, and which saw the province move into a pandemic lockdown and toward mail-in voting on the night before the vote would have been held. There are three challenges of election results currently before the courts, launched by defeated candidates Jim Lester, Sheila Fitzpatrick and Alison Coffin. Earlier in the day, Justice Minister John Hogan announced an all-party committee will help modernize the Elections Act from 1991. Justice Minister John Hogan will lead the committee charged with reforming the Elections Act.(CBC) It will be made up of four Liberals, two PCs, one NDP and one Independent. The committee, which will be chaired by Hogan, "will review the facts of the 2021 general election and provide input in relation to making voting as accessible as possible for all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians," according to a media release issued Wednesday afternoon. It was one of Premier Andrew Furey's first promises, and one that PC Leader David Brazil said was much needed: an overhaul of the Elections Act, following an election unlike any other, one that included a 10-week campaign and a largely mail-in vote. But NDP House leader Jim Dinn said the committee is nothing short of "window dressing." "In what world would we come out of the election we just had, called by the government in power for their political gain, and then entrust all of the decision-making on reforming the Elections Act to that same group of people?" Dinn said in a media release issued Wednesday. The 2021 Newfoundland and Labrador election included a 10-week campaign. (Josee Basque/Radio-Canada) "Newfoundlanders and Labradorians should be outraged at this blatant attempt to control the outcome and recommendations that come from this committee. I am." Dinn said the committee should be chaired by an Independent MHA to ensure the process is non-partisan. Read more from CBC Newfoundland and Labrador
The reigning Mrs World, Caroline Jurie, has resigned her title, the organisation running the pageant said late on Tuesday, weeks after she was involved in a controversy at the Mrs Sri Lanka event. Jurie was arrested and released on bail this month after a fracas at the Mrs Sri Lanka pageant in Colombo, where Jurie forcibly removed the winner's crown, claiming the other woman was a divorcee and not qualified to win the title. "Her voluntary resignation decision was made solely by Caroline herself," Mrs World Inc said late on Tuesday, in a news release on social media.
WASHINGTON — A senior U.S. official said Wednesday that the Biden administration has laid out examples of the kinds of sanctions on Iran it’s willing to lift in exchange for Iran’s return to compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal. The official said the U.S. through intermediaries has presented Iran with three baskets of sanctions: those it’s prepared to lift, those it’s not prepared to lift and those that will require further study to determine if they are in fact appropriate for relief under the nuclear deal. The official briefed reporters on condition of anonymity because of the confidential nature of the discussions. The official declined to specify which sanctions fall into which baskets but said the third group is the most problematic. That’s because it includes measures that current officials believe may have been imposed by the previous administration simply to complicate any potential return to the deal that former President Donald Trump withdrew from in 2018. Any sanctions relief offered by the administration will be strongly opposed by Republicans in Congress, who on Wednesday unveiled draft legislation to codify the Trump-era sanctions in law. Relief will also likely be opposed by Israel, which regards Iran as an existential threat, as well as Gulf Arab states wary of Iran's increasing aggressiveness in the region. The 2015 deal gave Iran billions of dollars in sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its nuclear program. But that relief largely evaporated after Trump pulled out of the deal and began a self-styled “maximum pressure” campaign against Tehran by re-imposing the earlier sanctions and adding new ones. While the agreement allowed countries to continue to impose sanctions on Iran for non-nuclear reasons, such as support for terrorism and human rights abuses, some of the additional U.S. sanctions would have to be removed if Washington is to return to the deal, according to the official. The official said the Trump administration had designated some nuclear sanctions as terrorism sanctions. That makes it more difficult for a future president to return to the deal. Many of the sanctions that Trump imposed on Iran were clearly related to the nuclear program, including those that targeted companies and officials working on atomic matters, and would have to be removed if the U.S. returned to the deal. But others, ostensibly imposed on terrorism and human rights grounds, are less clear cut, including those on Iran’s financial, shipping, manufacturing and energy sectors. The official said the Biden administration is still determining which of those were legitimately related to terrorism and human rights. The official said there is not yet any sanctions relief agreement between Iran, the U.S. or other parties in the indirect negotiations taking place in Vienna on reviving the nuclear deal. Those talks are in recess but are expected to resume next week. The official would not give a timeframe on when the talks might conclude. Iran is demanding the removal of all sanctions that the Trump administration imposed on it following its withdrawal from the agreement known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA. The Biden administration has said it will only lift sanctions if Iran returns to compliance with the restrictions the agreement placed on its nuclear activities. The official said no decision had been made on the sequencing of either side's moves but stressed that a situation in which the U.S. removes its sanctions before Iran takes any action to resume its compliance would be “unacceptable.” State Department spokesman Ned Price said earlier Wednesday that the talks had produced “some signs of progress.” But, he cautioned that “we probably have a longer road ahead of us than we do in the rearview mirror at this point. And that is because of the inherent challenges in this process. And many of those challenges, at least, are not going away.” The talks in Vienna broke on Tuesday with delegates from Russia and Iran reporting limited progress. Russia’s representative Mikhail Ulyanov said after a meeting of the deal’s so-called Joint Commission of senior officials from France, Germany, Britain, China and Iran that they had noted “with satisfaction the progress in negotiations to restore the nuclear deal.” Meanwhile, Iran’s delegate, Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, also sounded a positive note, telling Iran’s official IRNA news agency that the talks were “moving forward despite difficulties and challenges.” Matthew Lee, The Associated Press
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The fatal police shooting of Ma’Khia Bryant, a Black teenager seen on video charging at two people with a knife, came within minutes of the verdict in George Floyd’s killing — causing outrage by some over the continued use of lethal force by Columbus police. Officials with the Columbus Division of Police released initial footage of the shooting Tuesday night just hours after it happened, a departure from protocol as the force faces immense scrutiny from the public following a series of recent high-profile police killings that have led to clashes. Body camera footage from the other officers on the scene was released during a briefing with city officials on Wednesday. Bryant was identified by Franklin County Children Services and police to be 16 years old and in foster care at the time of her death. “It’s a tragedy. There’s no other way to say it. It’s a 16-year-old. I’m a father,” Interim Columbus Police Chief Michael Woods told reporters Wednesday. “Her family is grieving. Regardless of the circumstances associated with this, a 16-year-old lost her life yesterday.” He added, “I sure as hell wish it wouldn’t have happened.” The killing has caused an outcry in the community and nationwide as Bryant's killing is the second high-profile fatal shooting of a teenager by police in the last month. Body camera footage released last week showed an officer shoot and kill 13-year-old Adam Toledo in Chicago. White House press secretary Jen Psaki called the Columbus shooting “tragic” and said President Joe Biden has been briefed on it. “She was a child. We’re thinking of her friends and family and the communities that are hurting and grieving her loss,” Psaki said in a statement. She added that the White House’s focus is “to address systemic racism and implicit bias head on” by passing legislation on “much-needed” police reforms. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine also watched the footage of Bryant's killing, calling it a tragedy. “Any time anyone is killed, it’s a tragedy. Any time a teenager, a child, is killed, it’s a horrible tragedy," the Republican governor said during a briefing. He added that while the public has the video evidence, “we need to let the investigation play out.” The 10-second body camera clip begins with the officer getting out of his car at a house where police had been dispatched after some had called 911 saying they were being physically threatened, Woods said. It remains unclear who called the police. The officer takes a few steps toward a group of people in the driveway when Bryant starts swinging a knife wildly at another girl or woman, who falls backward. The officer shouts several times to get down. Bryant then charges at another girl or woman, who is pinned against a car. From a few feet away, with people on either side of him, the officer fires four shots, and Bryant slumps to the ground. A black-handled blade similar to a kitchen knife or steak knife lies on the sidewalk next to her. A man immediately yells at the officer, “You didn’t have to shoot her! She’s just a kid, man!” The officer responds, “She had a knife. She just went at her.” The race of the officer wasn't clear and he was taken off patrolling the streets for the time being. Bryant was taken to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead, police said. Police did not say if anyone else was injured. In the moments after the shooting, people living or visiting the street filmed as police roped off the area with yellow tape in front of the house where the shooting took place. A neighbour's video shows an officer performing CPR on the teenager while a man can be heard yelling, “You all just jumped out of the (expletive) car and shot her!” Neighbours stood in open doorways filming and behind cars shaking their heads, eyewitness footage showed. Woods said state law allows police to use deadly force to protect themselves or others, and investigators will determine whether this shooting was such an instance. Ohio’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation is now reviewing the killing following an agreement with the city last summer for all police shootings to be handled by the independent investigators under Attorney General Dave Yost's office. While Mayor Andrew Ginther mourned the loss of the young victim Tuesday night, he defended the officer’s use of deadly force. “We know based on this footage the officer took action to protect another young girl in our community,” he told reporters. The shooting happened about 25 minutes before a judge read the verdict convicting former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin of murder and manslaughter in the killing of Floyd. It also took place less than 5 miles from where the funeral for Andre Hill, who was killed by another Columbus police officer in December, was held earlier this year. The officer in Hill's case, Adam Coy, a 19-year veteran of the force, is now facing trial for murder, with the next hearing scheduled for April 28. Less than three weeks before Hill was killed, a Franklin County Sheriff's deputy fatally shot 23-year-old Casey Goodson Jr. in Columbus. The case remains under federal investigation. Last week, Columbus police shot and killed a man who was in a hospital emergency room with a gun on him. Officials are continuing an investigation into that shooting. On Wednesday, DeWine detailed upcoming legislation to boost police accountability in the state and overhaul policing. The effort was initially introduced in another form with Attorney General Yost in the days after Floyd's killing. The new bill, to be introduced by GOP State Rep. Phil Plummer, of Dayton, would, among other things, establish an oversight board for law enforcement in the state. DeWine said the goal of the legislation is to increase transparency in the profession. ___ Farnoush Amiri is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a non-profit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Farnoush Amiri And Andrew Welsh-Huggins, The Associated Press
LAS VEGAS — A convicted killer who is fighting a possible June execution date that would make him the first person put to death in Nevada in 15 years is calling for the state to consider the firing squad as an option, a rare method in the United States. Attorneys for Zane Michael Floyd say he does not want to die and are challenging the state plan to use a proposed three-drug lethal injection, which led to court challenges that twice delayed the execution of another convicted killer who later took his own life in prison. “This is not a delaying tactic,” Brad Levenson, a federal public defender representing Floyd, said Monday. But a challenge of the state execution protocol requires the defence to provide an alternative method, and Levenson said gunshots to the brain stem would be “the most humane way.” “Execution by firing squad ... causes a faster and less painful death than lethal injection,” the attorneys said in a court filing Friday. Nevada once allowed firing squads, but state law now requires the use of lethal injection in sentences of capital punishment. Three U.S. states — Mississippi, Oklahoma and Utah — and the U.S. military allow capital punishment by gunfire. The last time that method was used in the United States was in Utah in 2010. Floyd's attorneys are asking a federal judge in Las Vegas to stop Floyd from being put to death until prison officials “devise a new procedure or procedures to carry out a lawful execution.” Levenson said he and attorney David Anthony are fighting multiple issues in state and federal courts, with the possibility that Floyd’s death could be set for the week of June 7. Prosecutors will seek an execution warrant at a state court hearing next month. The 45-year-old was convicted in 2000 of killing four people with a shotgun in a Las Vegas supermarket in 1999 and badly wounding a fifth person. Floyd appeared to exhaust his federal appeals last November, and the U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear his case. Floyd wants a chance to seek clemency at a June 22 meeting of the Nevada State Pardons Board, Levenson said. Floyd's attorneys argue that a three-drug injection combination the state wants to use — the sedative diazepam, the powerful synthetic painkiller fentanyl and a paralytic, cisatracurium — would amount to cruel and unusual punishment in violation of his constitutional rights. Anthony made similar arguments on behalf of Scott Raymond Dozier before Nevada's last scheduled execution was called off in 2017 and 2018. Dozier killed himself in prison in January 2019. A judge blocked the first date after deciding that use of the paralytic might cause painful suffocation while Dozier was aware but unable to move. Pharmaceutical companies that made the three drugs stopped the second date with arguments against using their products in an execution, an issue several states are facing. Floyd would be the first person executed in Nevada since 2006, when Daryl Mack asked to be put to death for his conviction in a 1988 rape and murder in Reno. Nevada has 65 inmates awaiting execution, a state Department of Corrections spokeswoman said. ___ This story was first published on April 19, 2021. It was updated on April 21, 2021, to correct the number of Nevada inmates awaiting execution based on information from the Department of Corrections. There are 65 inmates, not 72. Ken Ritter, The Associated Press
BUDAPEST, Hungary — Hungary's right-wing government and the liberal leadership of the country's capital city are absorbed in a conflict over a hospital for the homeless that may soon be forced to close its doors. The hospital provides medical care, social services and shelter to more than 1,000 people annually. Equipped with nearly 75 beds, state of the art facilities, a temporary hostel and outpatient treatment, it is the only such hospital in Budapest, which suffers from a high rate of homelessness. Yet the Hungarian government has ordered the Budapest Methodological Center of Social Policy, which runs the city-funded hospital, to vacate the state-owned building the facility occupies, creating uncertainty for the hundreds of people receiving treatment there and a clash with the capital's liberal mayor. “If there is no alternative site, we are not moving out. They can send the police after us, they can pull us out by force, but we’re not leaving on our own,” Budapest Mayor Gergely Karacsony told The Associated Press. Karacsony, an outspoken opponent of Hungary's central government under Prime Minister Viktor Orban, says he spent months asking government officials to allow the hospital either to remain in place or to relocate to another suitable building. The office of Andrea Mager, Hungary's minister without portfolio for the development of public assets, told the AP that an unspecified health care institute will be moved into the property, and that Budapest's government “has known for nearly a year that the building...will be renovated, (but) has not taken any substantive steps to relocate” the hospital. After extending the deadline, the government now says the hospital has until June 30 to relocate. Dr. Franciska Csortos, the head of inpatient care at the hospital, says that Hungary’s public health authority requires homeless patients needing chronic care to be treated at approved facilities that can provided specialized medical attention. But the only other such facility in Budapest is full, she said, meaning her 75 patients and over 150 people staying at the facility's temporary hostel would have nowhere else to go if the hospital has to vacate the building. “(The patients) are in such a condition that they absolutely require hospital care. We cannot release them into temporary shelters,” Csortos said. With Hungary's healthcare system already overburdened by the nearly 9,000 people hospitalized with COVID-19, allowing homeless patients to be returned to the street could have fatal consequences, Karacsony said. "We will simply not leave these people on their own. We would not be sending them to the street, but to their deaths,” the mayor said. Hungary’s government has long taken a hard-line approach to homelessness. After courts struck down two laws that banned sleeping rough, the ruling Fidesz party used its two-thirds majority in parliament to pass a constitutional amendment in 2018 that criminalized “habitual residence in a public space.” Police can issue citations to unhoused people and require them to perform community service. Someone found sleeping in a public place three times can be imprisoned. Dora Papadopulosz, a spokesperson for the From Streets to Homes Association, a Budapest-based housing rights organization, said the decision to evict the hospital is part of a trend of anti-homeless policies enacted by Orban's government that in her view reflect a social agenda that favours the middle and upper classes while ignoring the needs of the poor. “If people in the government think it’s fair to bring homeless people to jail, then we shouldn’t be surprised that they simply don’t care about the most vulnerable people in society,” Papadopulosz said. In a 2020 report, housing non-profit Habitat For Humanity estimated that some 3 million people in Hungary suffer from housing poverty, defined as people with debts who have difficulty affording monthly rent, people who live in overcrowded or very poor quality apartments, or those who struggle to pay household bills. Some estimates place the number of homeless in the country at 30,000. Adding to the strain, rent prices in Hungary increased by 60% between 2007 and 2019, but salaries have not kept pace, according to Eurostat, the official statistical office of the European Union. Andrea Toth, who is being treated at the evicted hospital, said she and other patients are uncertain of where they will go if the facility must relocate, but she trusts the mayor will make sure they are sheltered. “We don’t know what the end result will be. All we know is that no one will go out on the street. Gergely Karacsony said that himself," Toth said. "The government didn’t promise anything. Their motto should be, ‘Live and let live.’” Justin Spike, The Associated Press
When Delio Delgado turns 51 on Wednesday, he'll be inside a Hamilton hospital battling COVID-19. "I was hoping that tomorrow would be a happier day," he said. But his birthday almost didn't come. Since mid-March, he's been fighting a virus that nearly killed him. And while he's on a long road to recovery now, when Delgado leaves the hospital, he'll have another uphill battle — the Dominican-born Hamiltonian is months behind on rent and car payments. "I'm not doing very well," Delgado said about his finances from his hospital bed during an interview on Tuesday morning. "I had to stop the lease of the car, I had to stop insuring the car ... I'm an industrial and residential painter ... my car gets me my income." Delio Delgado lives in a hotspot in Hamilton and wishes vaccines could have come sooner. Now, he's in the hospital with COVID-19 and will return home in debt.(Submitted by Delio Delgado ) And Delgado said his driver's license was suspended because he was unable to do a required physical exam, which he worries will jack up his insurance when he's ready to drive. But Delgado said he is thankful to be breathing, even if it doesn't come easy. From home to induced coma in a matter of days Delgado said he worked at Hamilton General Hospital as a painter during most of the pandemic, which allowed him to learn a lot about the virus and staying safe. He eventually stopped working there and was on unemployment insurance before his life changed in March. Delgado isn't sure how he got the virus, but he lives in one of Hamilton's hot spot neighbourhoods. His area, with the L8N postal code, was recently given vaccine priority. WATCH: Hamilton man describes emotional moments in ICU with COVID On March 13, after feeling a few symptoms he thought could be COVID-19, Delgado said he had uncontrollable diarrhea. That's when he said he decided to go to the emergency room at St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton. Delgado said he was immediately given oxygen and put into the intensive care unit (ICU). "I got into ICU and it was like a hurricane, I got like four or five nurses around me and everyone is doing a different task, and I remember, 'What is his oxygen level? What is his oxygen level? He's not doing very well,' that's what I'm hearing," Delgado recalls. "I spent three or four days like that." Staff at Hamilton Health Sciences don personal protective equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic.(Hamilton Health Sciences) While he was in the ICU, Delgado said he had a quiet moment with his doctor. "My doctor at the time, she stopped at the door of the ICU, it was all glass, she can see through ... I was just passing out almost and I put my hand on my heart and I tapped it like ... 'I appreciate what you're doing, saving my life,'" Delgado said, tearing up. "The beautiful thing, that gave me a smile on my heart, was she [pulled down] her mask and gave me a smile and she also tapped her heart back." Shortly after, Delgado entered an induced coma. He's unsure when he woke up, but Degaldo said he was on a ventilator and a liquid diet. Then he said doctors told him he'd be leaving the ICU and beginning his road to recovery. Delgado said his cousin came to visit him that day and said they heard on March 27 he only had half an hour to live. "Miraculously, I got out of the dark days," he said. Province should've rolled out vaccines sooner, Delgado says Now he's thinking about leaving the hospital — but he'll have to deal with those missed payments, which he said are roughly $1,250 a month. In Delgado's case, a group of friends and local artists started a fundraiser to help him avoid being overwhelmed with debt when he leaves. Ingrid Mayrhofer, one of his friends who started the GoFundMe page, said it's been four days and they've raised nearly $4,000 of their $5,000 goal. "He's the first person I actually know who was infected ... it's definitely hit home," she said. "I'm really grateful for how the arts community has come together in support of Delio." WATCH: Ford blames lack of vaccines for COVID-19 crisis, should he? Delgado said the Ford government needs to do more to help COVID-19 survivors avoid financial hardship. "I don't know what the measures could've been because everybody's situation is different ... I don't think they're doing the best job with this pandemic either," he said. One thing he wishes happened sooner was lowering the age limits for people to get doses of vaccines like AstraZeneca and reaching hot spot communities sooner. "We know this pandemic is affecting more marginalized and people of colour than any other demographic," he said Tuesday. "Everything should've happened sooner." Family, painting and religion fuel for recovery Delgado said he became religious because of his time in the ICU. After he's back home, Delgado said he wants to spend time with his mother, who plans on coming from the Dominican Republic. He also said he's excited to see his American bulldog, Useey, his 10-year-old son, Samuel, and start painting again. "That's my fuel," Delgado said.
A wood carving destined to overlook the Williams Lake Stampede grounds was destroyed in a fire that ripped through the creator's studio last Friday. The cedar cow boss statue, a replacement for the 15-year-old original that collapsed due to rot, was accidentally set ablaze by the wood stove that carver Ken Sheen uses to burn off sawdust in his studio located off Highway 97 near McLeese Lake. The highway was reduced to single-lane traffic for two hours as a result of the fire. The statue was charred along with Sheen's carving tools and a number of other wood sculptures. Over the years, Sheen has been hired by Williams Lake to create wood sculptures that are displayed across the city, including the Heart of a Champion located at the intersection of two local highways. Sheen's wood works are also displayed in Quesnel and 100 Mile House. The carver says he was in shock when he discovered fire had spread from his sawdust burner to the entire studio after he left it to go to his house and check his computer. Fire at Ken Sheen's studio near the McLeese Lake.(Marlene Pegg) "I could hear [the fire] sounded like gunshots going off," Sheen said Monday to Shelley Joyce, the host of CBC's Daybreak Kamloops. "My dogs were barking outside … I finally went out to see what they were barking about and there was a huge flame. It must have been 60 feet or 80 feet tall." "It was intense and everything was on fire," he said. "It was so intense you couldn't get anywhere near that." Sheen says he lost not only several months of work carving the cow boss statue but also chainsaws and many other specialized sculpting tools estimated to be worth about $7,000. "It burned up thousands and thousands of dollars worth of tools that I've been collecting over 20 years," he said. "Everything is gone." A carved wooden eagle side table was one of many artworks destroyed by the fire in Ken Sheen's studio last Friday. (Ken Sheen) Williams Lake Coun. Scott Nelson says the entire council feels for Sheen and the losses he's sustained. "Our hearts are with Ken Sheen and the family," Nelson said. "He's certainly got the entrepreneurial spirit of the Cariboo inside of him." Sheen says the community helped clean up the mess and is holding a fundraiser to help him get back to work. "I'm just trying to figure out what to do …I'm trying to get my ducks in a row," he said. Tap the link below to hear Ken Sheen's interview on Daybreak Kamloops:
BARCELONA, Spain — Since the coronavirus pandemic struck Spain, a glass pane has separated Xavier Antó and Carmen Panzano for the first prolonged period of the couple’s 65-year marriage. Antó, age 90, appears three or four times a week at the street-level window that looks into the Barcelona nursing home where his 92-year-old wife lives, which closed to visitors more than a year ago to protect residents from COVID-19. Employees from the home provide him with a chair and bring Panzano to the other side of the window. Antó shows her photos of their grandchildren on his phone to try to counteract the effects of her Alzheimer’s disease. Both have vaccines against the coronavirus, but Spain’s nursing homes still are under tight controls after tens of thousands of the country’s oldest adults died in senior care facilities during the early months of the pandemic. The couple met in 1953 and got married in 1955. Except for a spell early in their marriage when he worked away from home, they always were together. “We had never been apart,” Antó told The Associated Press. “Last March, the home’s director told me that when I left I wouldn’t be able to come back because the local authorities had established some very strict protocols,” At first, workers at the home made video calls on a tablet two or three times a week so he and Panzano could see each other, he said. “Then they set up a booth with a transparent divider, but I prefer this window because with the booth you were limited to a certain day, and then only had half an hour,” Antó recalled. “I come to the window since in the booth there is also a screen between you, and I can’t touch her or give her a kiss anyway.” When he comes to visit, the wife and husband put their hands on the glass and blow each other kisses. Although they cannot hear each other speak, at least they don’t worry about how much time they have to share. When he cannot come, a home assistant who worked for the couple for over 20 years comes in his place. “She is like a daughter to us,” Antó said. “I come as often as I can and will keep doing so as long as my body allows me,” he said. “If I were the sick one, she would do the same thing for me, and then some.” ___ AP writer Joseph Wilson contributed to this report. ___ Follow all of AP’s pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic, https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak Emilio Morenatti, The Associated Press
