By Lincoln DePradine

Ontario is now in the first week of a 28-day provincial lockdown in what is now being called the “third wave” of the Coronavirus pandemic.

The lockdown was ordered amidst growing concern about ongoing hospitalization and deaths from COVID-19, as well as a spike in confirmed cases of patients with variants of the virus first detected in the United Kingdom, South Africa and Brazil.

Dr Upton Allen, addressing a recent online town hall of the Black Health Alliance, warned that the new variants “are more transmissible The continued threat of illness and death from COVID is good enough reason “to do all the things that are needed to be done to reduce the risk of picking up and transmitting any form of the virus’’, said Dr Allen,

Data from the variants shows that “one person is much more likely to infect a larger number of people’’, and the resulting illness is “potentially much more severe’’, said Allen, a professor of paediatrics at the University of Toronto and head of the Division of Infectious Diseases at The Hospital for Sick Children.

“The variants may also be associated with greater mortality – greater chances of dying,’’ he added.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford, in announcing plans for the lockdown, said the province was facing “a new enemy’’ with the COVID-19 variants “spreading rapidly’’.

“This is a new pandemic. We are now fighting a new enemy,” he said. “Please understand, folks, this decision weighs extremely heavy on me.”

A stay-at-home order  came into  effect across Ontario  today.

The order, similar to one implemented in January, requires people to stay home except for essential trips like grocery shopping, accessing health-care services, work that cannot be done remotely and exercise. .

Schools will remain open during the stay-at-home order, except where local public health units have ordered them to close.

Ontario schools are remaining open because they are “critical for students’ mental health and learning’’, said education minister Stephen Lecce.

“We believe that students deserve to be in class. On the advice of the chief medical officer of health, schools will remain open in this province,’’ he said. “Nearly three out of four schools have no active cases at all.’’

Since the outbreak of the pandemic last year, Canada has recorded more than one million cases of the virus. Altogether, there have been more than 23,000 deaths. Of that number, in excess of 7,400 have been in Ontario.

The new variants  of the virus are also of deep concern to federal officials.

Since the outbreak of the pandemic last year, Canada has recorded more than one million cases of the virus. Altogether, there have been more than 23,000 deaths. Of that number, in excess of 7,400 have been in Ontario.

Local authorities in places such as Toronto, said Tam, they must engage in “maintaining or immediately implementing strong public health measures which may include restrictions, closures or other community-based control measures to achieve reductions in contacts necessary to get ahead of – or prevent – further spread of rapidly spreading variants’’.

The variants may also be associated with greater mortality – greater chances of dying,’’

The current lockdown, which began last Saturday, is the province’s third since the outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic.

Some, including the Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses (CFIB), are unhappy with the latest shutdown.

The CFIB claims it’s “unconscionable’’ for the government to “continue to rely almost exclusively on blanket lockdowns’’ for controlling COVID cases. It said the new measures are making small businesses “a scapegoat for the Ontario government’s lack of planning or foresight’’.

The continued threat of illness and death from COVID is good enough reason “to do all the things that are needed to be done to reduce the risk of picking up and transmitting any form of the virus’’, said Dr Allen, who encouraged vaccinating and the following of infection-control measures such as wearing of masks.

His co-presenter at the town hall, Dr Zainab Abdurrahman, said studies have indicated that the COVID-19 vaccines have had “the same efficacy’’ on all races, with no group having “a worse side effect than others’’.

Defeating the Coronavirus is “a long game’’ and it will be a while before people return to pre-COVID -19 activities “like participating more within our community and families’’, said Abdurrahman, allergy lead in the Special Immunization Clinic at McMaster Children’s Hospital.