Good morning, Greater Sudbury! Here are a few stories to get you started on this fine Thursday morning.
Local COVID-19 survey finds 74% of businesses that responded at risk of closure
Seventy-four per cent of businesses that responded to a Sudbury Chamber of Commerce survey in May said they are at medium to high risk of going out of business. Furthermore, 41 per cent said they have had to temporarily close their businesses as part of the measures to stop the spread of COVID-19. The City of Greater Sudbury, Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce and Workforce Planning for Sudbury & Manitoulin released the results of the second COVID-19 Business Impact survey for May 2020. Almost 200 local businesses responded. While level of risk and temporary closures are slightly higher than reported in the April 2020 survey, it is to be expected that the longer the mandated closures, the greater the risk to businesses that are unable to adapt, provide programs, products or services, said the Chamber in a news release.
'Weed' deliver: High Life will send pot right to your doorstep
Just when you thought it couldn’t get easier to be a pot enthusiast in Greater Sudbury, High Life is now offering delivery services. The owner of one of Sudbury’s first pot shops said delivery services started June 10 and have met with a great deal of success. The store received its first delivery order within minutes of the service being offered. Eugene Konarev said the service is available to customers within 22 kilometres of the store, located at 1299 Marcus Dr., off The Kingsway in the Silver Hills area. That covers pretty much most of Greater Sudbury, he said.
Sudbury BLM protest set for ‘Juneteenth’ (June 19) — the day marking American slavery's end
Sudbury has been called once again to march in protest of racism and racial injustice through its downtown core, but this time on June 19, otherwise known as Juneteenth. Black Lives Matter: Racial Injustice Rally is the third demonstration held in the Nickel City to raise awareness for the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement and its motivations of recognizing and eliminating racism, racial injustice, and police brutality. It’s one of many such protests that have taken place across the globe since 46-year-old George Floyd was killed May 25 during an arrest by Minneapolis Police after he allegedly used a counterfeit bill. The traditionally American holiday of Juneteenth commemorates the date in 1865 when slaves living in Galveston, Texas were informed by Union Gen. Gordon Granger that the civil war had ended, and they were free. The announcement instituted the Emancipation Proclamation issued by American President Abraham Lincoln more than two years prior, on Jan. 1, 1863.
Recoveries continue to outstrip rate of new COVID-19 cases
The week's trend continues with Public Health Ontario still reporting a daily COVID-19 case increase below 200. The public health agency reported 190 new lab-confirmed case of the coronavirus today. Over the last four days, the daily increase has ranged from 181 new cases to 197 new cases. Testing levels remain consistent with 24,205 tests processed in Ontario since yesterday's update. The province is also reporting 12 COVID-related deaths today, including four people between the ages of 40 and 59, six people between the ages of 60 and 79, and two people over the age of 80. There were 353 new recoveries reported in today's epidemiological report, causing the number of active cases in the province to drop rather than increase. There are now 2,410 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, according to Public Health Ontario. Of those cases, 383 people are hospitalized, including 92 patients in intensive care units and 65 patients on ventilators.
West calls on province for emergency support for post-secondary sector
The COVID-19 pandemic has put a great deal of financial strain on the post-secondary sector and exacerbated fiscal struggles brought on by provincial funding cuts in 2019, Sudbury MPP Jamie West said this week. West announced that he has written to Sault MPP and Colleges and Universities Minister Ross Romano, calling for emergency financial support for the Nickel City’s post-secondary institutions, Collège Boréal, Cambrian College and Laurentian University. “Minister, without direct government help, Sudbury’s students and families will suffer,” wrote West. “I am concerned that if the public post-secondary institutions in my riding do not receive additional funding to get through this pandemic, they may need to make difficult cuts.”
Let’s talk about COVID-19: Adapting to working from home with help from science
Get a weekly dose of good science from the comfort of your own home every week as Laurentian University and Science North have teamed up for a discussion series called Let’s Talk About COVID-19. The public is welcome to tune into the weekly lecture series, each of which is being livestreamed on the Facebook pages of Science North and Laurentian University. Sudbury.com will be carrying the lectures live every Wednesday morning at 10 a.m. as well. The week’s seminar explores research-supported strategies to adapt to the challenges of working from home during COVID-19. “These will include ergonomic best practices for setting up a workstation, using your kitchen table as an office and maximizing your workspace for comfort, using mindfulness-based strategies to cope, preventing fatigue, and other helpful strategies to help you adapt.”
Read the full story and watch the video here.
Ontario extends emergency orders
The emergency orders in Ontario have been extended to June 30. According to the government, extending the emergency order ensures they have the tools to "safely and gradually reopen the province, while continuing to support front-line health-care workers and protect vulnerable populations". This week the number of COVID-19 cases being reported by Public Health Ontario has been on a downward trend. For the past three days, the number of new cases being reported daily has been under 200. "Extending these emergency orders gives our frontline health care providers the necessary flexibility to rapidly respond to urgent needs and protect our most vulnerable," said Premier Doug Ford in a news release.
