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No COVID-19 daily figures on Christmas Day, a day after Ontario hits new single-day record

The province will not be releasing its COVID-19 daily figures on Christmas Day. A provincewide lockdown goes into effect at midnight.

Strict provincewide lockdown kicks in at 12:01 a.m. on Boxing Day

CBC News ·
Ontario is set to enter a provincewide lockdown on Boxing Day at 12:01 a.m., Premier Doug Ford announced Monday. (Evan Mitsui/CBC News)

The province will not be releasing its COVID-19 daily figures on Christmas Day — a day after Ontario hit a new record high.

Ontario reported a new single-day record of 2,447 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, with 49 additional deaths. 

The case count surpassed the province's previous high of 2,432, which was recorded on Dec. 17. 

Thursday's figure also marks the tenth consecutive day of more than 2,000 new cases in the province. The province saw 2,408 infections on Wednesday and 2,202 recorded the day before that.

Of Thursday's new cases, 646 were reported in Toronto, 502 in Peel Region, 173 in Windsor-Essex, 263 in York Region and 101 in Hamilton.

Ontario's chief medical officer of health, Dr. David Williams, and associate medical officer of health, Dr. Barbara Yaffe, will hold a COVID-19 update on Dec. 29, however they will not be holding their regular provincial updates on Dec. 28 or 31.

The province will also be holding off on releasing COVID-19 daily case counts on Dec. 28 and Jan. 1, the Ministry of Health said. Data for those dates will be posted the following day.

Residents across the Greater Toronto Area woke up to a white Christmas on Friday. Environment Canada issued a weather advisory predicting up to 15 centimetres of snow by Friday morning. (Alan Habbick/CBC)

A provincewide lockdown will begin at 12:01 a.m. on Dec. 26 and remain in effect until Jan. 23, 2021 in the 27 public health units that comprise southern Ontario.

In Ontario's north, where daily case numbers have been significantly lower, the lockdown is set to expire on Jan. 9, 2021.

Premier Doug Ford said the strict new measures will be crucial in preserving capacity in Ontario's health-care system as intensive care units in hospitals are becoming increasingly inundated with COVID-19 patients.

What's open and closed on Christmas Day

Christmas Day in the GTA will look a bit different this year with the lockdown still in effect. Here's a list of what is open and closed in and around the city on this day:

Open

  • TTC service, operating on a holiday service schedule.
  • GO Transit.
  • Outdoor city-run skating rinks.
  • City parks.

Closed

  • All banks and government offices.
  • LCBO stores and The Beer Store.
  • Grocery stores.
  • Skiing and snowboarding facilities.
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