Good morning, Greater Sudbury.
Here are some stories to start your day.
Seventeen new COVID-19 cases reported by Public Health Sudbury for Jan. 28:
The Sudbury health unit has reported 17 newly confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the area. This is the second highest daily total so far this year. There were 19 cases on January 9, 2021. This is more than the three times the five new cases that were reported Wednesday. Public Health Sudbury and Districts (PHSD) said this new case count means there have been 499 confirmed cases in the local jurisdiction since COVID-19 case tracking began back in March of 2020. PHSD has also reported there are now 95 active cases being monitored at this time. This is the highest number of active cases in the Sudbury health unit jurisdiction since the pandemic began. The health unit said so far 404 cases have been resolved since the pandemic case count began locally last March. As for the geographic area the PHSD daily update page reported 17 new cases were found to have occurred within the Greater Sudbury area in the past 24 hours.
COVID case counts dropping in many Ontario communities but the COVID variant is causing worry:
Top Ontario Ministry of Health officials at Queen's Park reported Thursday that the COVID-19 case rate and hospitalizations across Ontario are gradually dropping. "It's encouraging, but slow," said Dr. David Williams, Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health during a mid-afternoon briefing. He was joined by Dr. Aladsteinn Brown, the Dean of the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto. "We're doing better now than we were two weeks ago," said Brown. "Cases are down. Hospitalizations are down. And we're moving less. Mobility is down," said Brown. He acknowledged there was "an uptick" in COVID cases on Thursday that was disappointing. "I know this reflects sacrifices and many hard choices about seeing friends, about seeing loved ones, about where you work. It is starting to work against COVID-19," Brown continued. "But we're nowhere in the clear yet," Brown quickly added. "Cases are down in our long-term care homes, but the deaths will continue to mount for a long time." Brown said it was critical to continue taking whatever steps are needed to reduce those deaths. He said this is why the vaccination program is especially urgent for long-term care homes and for other vulnerable populations in the province. More on this story here.
Less bureaucracy and better communication required to start finding solutions to city's homelessness crisis:
The attendance may have been smaller during the second of two special city council meetings focused on the issue of homelessness, but the message and stories were just as poignant. Greater Sudbury city councillors heard from a number of individuals on Thursday afternoon who have lived experience with homelessness. One of the speakers from Thursday returned after having spoke on Wednesday evening during the first special city council meeting. Stuart Donaldson spoke on Wednesday and returned Thursday to share his experience with homelessness. A seasonal worker by trade, Donaldson was out of work when the COVID-19 pandemic shut down many lines of work. Echoing his comments from the night prior, Donaldson said that there is a real need for education among many citizens, as there is a great deal of misunderstanding and stigmas attached to homeless individuals. "I've always known there was an issue but I definitely know the extent of the issue and just how horrible life is for some people. It's made me realize that it's an issue we'll never be able to solve without further educating people," said Donaldson. "The people sitting in this meeting right now and the people working in these shelters already know the issue and have a good understanding but can't do anything about it because of a lack of funding and policies getting in the way." Donaldson, who is a former drug user but is now clean and drug-free, says that there is an attitude toward those living on the streets that they are all drug addicts. "When you go out in the streets and this is my personal experience, I tried to live out in the bush near Garson so I wasn't in this downtown scene and was trying to avoid the stigma and the stereotype of just being a homeless junkie, because I'm not, but that's what everyone thinks I am," said Donaldson. "That's not because people are doing it on purpose, they're not trying to go out and say I'm a horrible junkie, it's because they don't know." Get the full story here.
Little Addi is heading into surgery, GoFundMe setup to help family with costs:
A kidney donor has come forward to help Addison Behrndt, a five-year-old Sudbury girl who has Sensenbrenner Syndrome, an extremely rare disease that has affected her organs. Addison's grandmother, Andrea Behrndt, said if everything goes smoothly, the transplant could happen as early as March. Unfortunately, Addison's health has taken a turn for the worst and she needs to undergo surgery earlier than expected. "We need Addi to be in tip-top shape going into transplant and her kidneys will not allow this to happen," her grandmother Andrea Behrndt said. "Her kidneys are shutting down quickly and her blood pressure is rising." Worried that Addison's kidneys won't make it until the transplant date, Andrea said the nephrology team at Sick Kids in Toronto want to start dialysis as soon as possible and remove both of Addison's kidneys at the same time. The family travelled to Sick Kids Hospital on Jan. 24, where they are currently monitoring Addison's blood pressure. She is expected to start dialysis this Friday and her kidney removal is scheduled for Feb. 8, possibly sooner. More on this story here.
Former track coach, sprinter to be sentenced Feb. 1 for sexual assault:
Following sentencing submissions earlier this month, Superior Court Justice Patricia Hennessy had reserved her decision. That decision will now be handed down Feb. 1. The Crown is seeking a two- to three-year penitentiary term. Should Hennessy decide a lesser sentence is appropriate, the Crown is seeking a jail term of two years less a day, as well as three years of probation and a number of other conditions. Loyer is represented by defence lawyer Michael Haraschuk, while Case is represented by Nicholas Xynnis. Both are seeking a six-month jail term, as well as three years probation. Hennessy found both of them guilty on March 5, 2020, Loyer of sexual assault and Case of sexual assault by aiding and abetting. Last week, Case was sentenced to 45 months in jail for sexually assaulting a teenage girl in the 1980s. However, Case is appealing the conviction, and he will remain free from jail pending the outcome of that application.
Students in four public health regions will return to class on Feb. 1:
Ontario Education Minister Stephen Lecce announced on Thursday that students in four of the province's health regions will return to class on Feb. 1. "On the advice of the Chief Medical Officer of Health, with the support of the local Medical Officers of Health, and with the introduction of additional layers of protection, 280,000 students in four public health regions will return to class on Monday, Feb. 1," said Lecce in a statement. "The government agrees with the growing consensus in the medical community that returning students to in-person learning is essential to the wellbeing, development and mental health of children. According to leading medical and scientific experts, including Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health, our province's schools are safe places for learning." Elementary and secondary schools in four additional public health units (PHUs) will be permitted to return to in-person learning on Feb. 1. This will bring the total number of students able to learn in-person to 520,000 across the province. Find the full story here.
Friday Weather:
Mainly cloudy today with some more chilly temperatures. Daytime high will be sitting at around -13. The wind chill will feel like -31 this morning and -19 in the afternoon. There is a risk of frostbite today. A few clouds this evening with the low dropping all the way down to -25. Overnight low will feel like -29 with the wind chill. For current weather conditions, short-term and long-term forecasts visit Sudbury.com's weather page at www.sudbury.com/weather.
