Nova Scotia resident Lorne Grabher will appeal the decision of the Nova Scotia Supreme Court which upheld the censorship of his family surname on a personalized license plate. Mr. Grabher used the plate on his vehicle for nearly three decades without incident until a single anonymous person complained about it to the Department of Motor Vehicles in 2016. Justice Centre

Call Durham Region Police at 1-888-579-1520 ext. 2530.

Two truck arson suspect

Turf war grips GTA

Durham Region Police have released good-quality photos of a suspect in a tow truck arson in Ajax. It’s not stated if the incident is related to the tow truck arsons in York Region last week and the raging turf war between operators that currently grips the GTA. On Saturday at about 1:10 p.m. someone torched the Chevy truck at Elizabeth St and Betts Rd. The suspect is described as male, black, wearing dark clothing.

North American stock markets have essentially collapsed Monday morning with the Toronto and New York indexes down 1,000 and 1400 points respectively on fear related to the COVID-19 epidemic. “This is basically panic selling”: Stock markets plunge as coronavirus fear spreads

New Toronto virus cases recently arrived from Iran

The Ontario government says that wo more cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) have cropped up on Toronto bringing the provincial total to 34 patients. The two new patients are a man in his 80s and a woman in her 70s, who both recently travelled to Iran, officials said on Monday morning. Both patients presented themselves to North York General Hospital and received care before being released. They currently remain at their homes in self-isolation. Of the 34 cases of the virus confirmed in Ontario, four patients have fully recovered.

Canadians on Grand Princess will be flown home by government

The 237 Canadian passengers on the cruise ship Grand Princess will be flown home from San Francisco and placed in a two-week quarantine at CFB Trenton, the government says.

New signs are on east and west side of Bayview at Millwood (Source: Leaside Community Group on Facebook)

A long, variously happy or complaining Facebook thread has appeared in response to the placement of the large new BIA signs on either side of Bayview Ave. at Millwood Rd. FB

Whitney Junior Public School

Toronto Medical Officer of Health Dr. Eileen de Villa has alerted staff and students at Whitney Junior Public School that someone who now has a confirmed case of COVID-19 visited the school on March 4.  The Toronto and District School Board has said that the individual was not a staff member or student at the school, though their reason for being there has not been released. In her letter, Dr. De Villa said that the individual was not symptomatic on the day he visited the school and therefore the risk to staff and students is considered low. Whitney Junior Public School is at the corner of Rosedale Heights Rd. and Maclennan  Ave. Members of the school community are being urged to monitor for symptoms and to call ahead if they need to seek medical treatment. “Symptoms of COVID-19 may appear in as few as two days or as long as 14 days after exposure and may include: fever, new onset of cough, difficulty breathing, fatigue, chills, malaise, sore throat, and/or diarrhea,” de Villa said in the letter. School cleaning staff have been scrubbing handrails, doorknobs and push plates at all schools, given the emerging threat from COVID-19.

Italy announced a sweeping quarantine early Sunday for its northern regions, igniting travel chaos as it restricted the movements of a quarter of its people in a bid to halt the new coronavirus’ relentless march across Europe. Shortly after midnight, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte signed a decree affecting 16 million people in the country’s prosperous north, including the Lombardy region and at least 14 provinces in neighbouring regions. The extraordinary measures will be in place until April 3. “For Lombardy and for the other northern provinces that I have listed, there will be a ban for everybody to move in and out of these territories and also within the same territory,” Conte said. “Exceptions will be allowed only for proven professional needs, exceptional cases and health issues.” CBC

• Italy records biggest one day jump in coronavirus cases

An Ontario ticket holder won Saturday night’s $11.4 million Lotto 649 jackpot. And the guaranteed $1 million prize went to a lottery player in British Columbia. The jackpot for the next Lotto 649 draw on Mar. 11 will be approximately $5 million.

Daylight Saving Time returns Sunday at 3 a.m. Sunrise will be 7.41 a.m., sunset 7.16 p.m. Spring forward an hour.

Steven Del Duca addresses convention on his election as leader/CPAC capture

Ontario Liberals have selected former cabinet minister Steven Del Duca as their new party leader. Del Duca takes over from former Premier Kathleen Wynne, who stepped down due to a dismal election result in 2018.

Toronto officials are alerting the public to the movements of a man now diagnosed with COVID-19 in the three days between his return from Las Vegan and his self-isolation with the virus.

How Chinese wildlife markets can cause virus outbreaks

This fascinating report explains how China’s wildlife “wet markets” are a breeding ground for coronavirus outbreaks and the quite frightening reason why the Communist government does not shut them all down.

Friday afternoon encampment fire

Last sunday’s encampment fire

The Toronto Fire Service was called Friday to extinguish a fire under the Gardiner. It is one of many such fires set by homeless people to cook and keep warm. On the right is a similar fire last Sunday.

WATCH: California National Guard delivering coronavirus test kits to the Grand Princess cruise ship pic.twitter.com/RpN0H6qTvU

— BNO News (@BNOFeed) March 6, 2020

There are 235 Canadians on the passenger manifest for a cruise ship that is being held off the coast of California for coronavirus testing. Global Affairs Canada says there are no confirmed cases of the new coronavirus on the ship. But the federal department says previous passengers of the Grand Princess cruise ship have tested positive for COVID-19, which is the respiratory disease caused by a new strain of coronavirus that first appeared in China last year.