UPDATE
This afternoon the Porcupine Health Unit reported three additional COVID-19 cases in Timmins. The total number of cases reported in the city today is now six. More details on the new cases are available here.
ORIGINAL STORY
Today, the Porcupine Health Unit reported three new COVID-19 cases. One previously reported case has also screened positive for a variant of concern.
All of the new cases are in Timmins. The variant is also a Timmins case and the health unit expects it to be the United Kingdom (B.1.1.7) strain.
To date, there have been 373 confirmed cases of the virus in the health unit region. There are 23 known active cases and 25 people have died.
For the active cases, 19 in Timmins, two in the area of Cochrane, Matheson, Iroquois Falls and Smooth Rock Falls, one in the Kapuskasing area, and one in the area of Hearst, Hornepayne.
Public Health Ontario reported 2,938 new lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases in today's update as well as 3,041 cases for yesterday. Since the start of the pandemic in Ontario, there have been 364,537 cases, including 331,600 recoveries and 7,450 deaths, of which 3,903 were individuals living in long-term care facilities.
People on an April 1 flight into Timmins may have been exposed to COVID-19. An air travel advisory has been issued for the Thursday, April 1 Air Canada flight AC8289 from Toronto to Timmins. It's for the 6:55 p.m. departure. The full details are available here.
In Timmins, there is also a previously announced high-risk exposure advisory for people who were at Restaurant Nadeau March 27 from noon to 1 p.m. People who were at the restaurant during that time are asked to self-isolate for 14 days, ending Saturday, April 10.
To curb the spread of the virus a provincial shutdown is place for at least four weeks.
There are COVID-19 assessment centres in Timmins, Cochrane, Iroquois Falls, Kapuskasing, Smooth Rock Falls, Hearst, and Hornepayne.
The Porcupine Health Unit COVID-19 information line can be reached at 705-267-1181 or 1-800-461-1818.
