Good morning, Greater Sudbury.
Here are some stories to start your day.
Sudbury health district moving to Red-Control on Monday:
The Ontario Government, in consultation with the Chief Medical Officer of Health, is transitioning a number of regions under the COVID-19 Response Framework, and Public Health Sudbury & Districts will move to Red-Control on Monday, March 8 at 12:01 a.m. Toronto, Peel and North Bay Parry Sound District public health regions will be moved out of the shutdown?and into the revised framework, with the Stay-at-Home order no longer in effect. In addition, seven other public health regions including Sudbury are being moved to new levels in the Framework. All decisions were made in consultation with the local medical officers of health and are based on the latest trends in public health indicators and local context and conditions. Full story here.
Public Health Sudbury reports 30 new COVID-19 cases for March 5:
As Sudbury ends the work week by moving toward the Red-Control zone (Monday Mar.8), Public Health Sudbury and Districts (PHSD) reported 30 new cases of COVID-19 in the area. PHSD also said there are now 154 cases being actively monitored. It is an increase of 30 over Thursday's number of 124. Again, this is the highest number of active cases since PHSD began tracking a year ago. Since the pandemic was declared in March 2020, there have been 744 total COVID-19 cases reported to the Sudbury health unit. PHSD said 590 of those cases have been resolved locally. In terms of where the new cases occurred, the PHSD daily update page reported that 29 cases were found to have occurred within the Greater Sudbury Area. One new case was assigned to the wider rural area of Sudbury district. With respect to possible causes of the new cases, PHSD reported six new cases listed as outbreak related, with an additional four cases of close contact of a confirmed case, and 20 cases of information pending or missing. On the provincial COVID-19 roster Friday, the Ontario government daily website reported 1,250 new confirmed COVID-19 cases across the province.
Century-old Sudbury fur business closing its doors as owners set to retire:
After more than 100 years in business, Lafrance Furs is closing up shop and the owners are starting their well-earned retirement. Marc Lafrance and his wife, Claire, have been operating the store since 2006, after Marc’s brother, Gerard, retired. They will shut the doors for good on March 28. “It is with mixed emotion that after 113 years in business, Lafrance Furs will be closing, bringing an end to an enterprise proudly rooted in the North,” said Marc Lafrance. “I’m going to be 80 years old, and I figured it’s about time to take things easy, but we’ve enjoyed every moment of it.” Established in 1908 by Adelard Lafrance, A. Lafrance & Sons Ltd. (Lafrance Furs) has always represented quality workmanship and friendly service, said Marc. “It has been my family’s privilege to serve our wonderful clients and friends across Northern Ontario for over three generations.” More on this story here.
Gold, battery metals exploration brisk in the Sudbury district:
The Sudbury Basin is known as one of the world's most prolific mining camps for nickel and base metals. But on underexplored ground in the outlying areas many exploration-stage junior miners continue to actively drill and sample for gold and metals related to the electric vehicle battery revolution. East of Sudbury, New Age Metals reported it's found rhodium at its River Valley Palladium Project. The company is in the advanced stages of planning for an open-pit mine, 60 kilometres east of the city. In a March 2 news release, New Age calls rhodium is the "rarest and most valuable" of all the platinum group metals. Recent spot prices have reached highs of more than US$24,000 per ounce, the company said. Rhodium is used in catalytic converters, designed to clean vehicle emissions. The metal was found in samples from a drill program in the north end of the deposit n the 15,800-acre property. With a preliminary economic study of the mine project finished, the company is out raising more than $5.2 million to do a next-stage pre-feasibility study for River Valley. The deposit contains 2.8 million ounces of palladium in the measured and indicated category, and 1.0 million ounces of the metal in the inferred category. Full story can be found here.
Two million more COVID-19 vaccines expected to arrive in Ontario before the end of the month:
Ontario Premier Doug Ford provided a COVID-19 vaccine update on March 5, stating that more than two million additional vaccines are expected to be available in Ontario before the end of March. The Premier also made mention of the newly-approved Johnson & Johnson single shot vaccine, adding a fourth vaccine to the country's arsenal. "We're now looking ahead and gearing up for Phase Two with a focus on vaccinating those who face the greatest risk from this virus," said Ford. "Our seniors, individuals with specific health conditions, people living in congregate settings and those who can not work from home such as first responders." As vaccine supplies increase, the province will be making efforts to make vaccines readily-available to everyone who wants one. Starting March 15, the province will launch an online booking system and a provincial customer service desk to answer questions and support appointment bookings at mass immunization clinics. This will initially support individuals over the age of 80 as part of Phase One, eventually extending to more groups during Phase Two. Friday's presser can be viewed here.
By end of March, Canada will have 8M vaccine doses, Trudeau says, with shipment update from Pfizer:
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced today that Canada has approved four COVID-19 vaccines and secured agreements with all four vaccine makers for shipments. As well, the prime minister said Pfizer has updated its shipment schedule for Canada, meaning 3.5 million doses originally set to arrive in the summer will be arriving over the spring. This means by the end of March, Canada will have eight million doses available of several vaccine types. Canada will also receive one million doses of the Pfizer vaccine in April and another one million doses in May. Trudeau also touched on the approval of the single-dose COVID-19 vaccine from Johnson & Johnson, although that vaccine isn't expected to ship before April. Canada has secured 38 million doses of the vaccine through previous negotiations. He said the country will receive 10 million doses of the single-dose vaccine, which is produced by U.S. pharmaceutical giant Janssen Inc., between April and June, with an option to purchase the 28 million other doses previously arranged. You can watch Friday's press conference here.
Public Health Sudbury: Those 80 and older, chronic home care recipients can register for vaccine lottery:
Public Health Sudbury & Districts (PHSD) has announced pre-registration for the COVID-19 vaccine is now available for adults 80 years of age and older and individuals who receive chronic home care services. The pre-registration will allow individuals to be contacted at a later date to book an appointment at an upcoming clinic, said the health unit, "when appointments become available." PHSD said the vaccine clinics will be held across the jurisdiction, will be by appointment only and will be part of a vaccine lottery. "Currently, vaccine clinics are being organized in Greater Sudbury beginning on March 11 and 12, 2021. Individuals in these groups who pre-register by Monday, March 8, 2021, at 8 p.m., will be entered into a lottery for the upcoming scheduled clinics in Sudbury. Additional clinics are also being planned across Public Health’s service area and details will be shared once available," said the news release. PHSD said because the vaccine supply is limited, the lottery will match recipients to the number of doses available. Full story here.
