Ontario’s Medical Officer of Health says Sunday that the number of community transmissions of COVID-19 is indeed falling slowly but people must continue to maintain social-distancing and their new at-home lifestyle for a while longer. The Ministry reported 434 new cases of COVID-19 on this sunny morning as thousands tuned in to church services. It is a heartening figure, below the average of 448 cases daily reported since Saturday, March 25. That includes the 511 seen Saturday (yesterday). “While it’s coming down slowly, it’s having ups and downs and we’d like to see it progressing even quicker,” MOH David Williams said. “That means everyone needs to adhere to physical distancing as we’re not yet disrupting community transmission adequately at this time. So we want to stick to the task.”

Update from Longo’s

Longo’s at Leaside Village on Laird Drive

Longo’s will require all customers to wear masks of some form in order to enter stores starting Monday, says a release from the firm. The decision by Longo’s and others raises the question of mask availability. Most conventional places for such a purchase are either closed or out of stock. Amazon is offering delivery of a mask by sometime in June.  Longo’s release

Leaside women making masks for porch pickup

At least two women are offering what appears to be home-made masks in posts to Leaside Community Facebook. Check them out here and also here.

Masks made in Leaside for porch pickup

Toronto Police attended a three-vehicle crash at Bloor St. and Dundas St. Saturday afternoon where a driver has fled the scene. A man in his 30s is said to have serious injuries. The scene is in the Roncesvalles neighourhood west of Lansdowne Ave. Photos tweeted by Poryo MohSo who has some nice pictures taken elsewhere on the account.

Person of interest

Private jet incinerated in February

York Regional Police have released a photo of a man who they call a person of interest in relation to the arson of a private jet at Buttonville Airport on February 27. The release does not offer much more on how or where police found this new lead. If you can help, call 866-876-5423, ext. 7541. Arsonist destroys private jet in gasoline fire at Buttonville

The Ministry of Health is reporting 511 new cases of COVID-19 and 55 more deaths in the province. The numbers reported on Saturday brings the total number of novel coronavirus cases in Ontario to 17,119, including 1,176 deaths and 11,390 recoveries. Statistics show that 66.5 percent of cases in Ontario have now been resolved.

• Remdesivir receives emergency approval as a Covid-19 treatment
• COVID-19 cases in Canada much higher than we think: Montreal researchers

Dr. Elena Pope

The head doctor treating children’s skin at the Hospital for Sick Children is suggesting parents look at their kids feet to see if there are unusual lesions around the toes that could be a sign of COVID-19 infection. Canadian Press says that Dr. Elena Pope has noticed an uptick in the appearance of so-called COVID toes in asymptomatic kids over the last few weeks in North America. “The kids are not really bothered by those lesions and I think that’s why it took a while for this to come to the forefront,” she said. “If they were not bothered by it, they maybe didn’t actually report it to their parents … most of the lesions disappear on their own. They fade over time.” CTV

A Lotto Max player somewhere in the Prairies has 55 million good reasons for checking his/her ticket this morning. Last night’s $55 million jackpot was claimed by a single ticket sold on the Prairies. The runner-up prize of just over $1 million went to a lottery player in British Columbia. The draw also offered three Maxmillions prizes of $1 million each, but none were won.

The Ontario government is allowing some workplaces to reopen, as long as they meet “strict public health measures and operate safely during the COVID-19 outbreak.” In a news release issued Friday, the province announced the businesses that will be allowed to start up again include seasonal businesses and some essential construction projects. Here is the list of businesses that may open. CBC

• Garden centres and nurseries with curbside pick-up and delivery only;

• Lawn care and landscaping;

• Additional essential construction projects that include:

• shipping and logistics;
• broadband, telecommunications, and digital infrastructure;
• any other project that supports the improved delivery of goods and services;
• municipal projects;
• colleges and universities;
• child care centres;
• schools;
• and site preparation, excavation, and servicing for institutional, commercial, industrial andresidential development

• Automatic and self-serve car washes;

• Auto dealerships, open by appointment only;

• Golf courses may prepare their courses for the upcoming season, but not open to the public.

• Marinas may also begin preparations for the recreational boating season by servicing boats and other watercraft and placing boats in the water, but not open to the public. Boats and watercraft must be secured to a dock in the marina until public access is allowed.

The Ministry of Health reported 421 new cases of the novel coronavirus on Friday, bringing the provincial total to 16,608 cases. The death toll has risen to 1,121 as 39 more deaths were reported. Meanwhile, 10,825 people have recovered from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, which is 65.2 percent of cases. Ministry of Health

Fire at encampment under Glen Rd. bridge/CityNews

One person has died Friday after a fire at an encampment under the Glen Road Bridge. The site appears to be in the Park Drive Reservation Lands near Glen and Beaumont Drive. TFS crews were called to the area on South Drive near Mount Pleasant Rd and Bloor St just before 8:30 a.m. An occupant of the encampment was found dead shortly after. The news comes as Toronto began moving several people from tents into 125 furnished apartment buildings.

Dr. Danny Chen led medical team

Mackenzie Health staff celebrate their patient’s remarkable improvement

Doctors at Mackenzie Richmond Hill Hospital (Mackenzie Health) have reportedly used an Ebola drug to achieve stunning improvements in a 69-year-old COVID-19 patient. The hospital is said to have obtained special dispensation from Health Canada to use the drug in this way.