OTTAWA -- Good morning. Here is the latest news on COVID-19 and its impact on Ottawa.

Fast Facts:

  • The St-Albert Cheese Co-op has temporarily closed following three cases of COVID-19 at the facility east of Ottawa
  • COVID-19 variants likely to make up 40 per cent of Ontario cases by mid-march
  • Ottawa Public Health reports a 35th consecutive day with fewer than 100 cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa
  • The Ottawa Hospital will start manufacturing a COVID-19 vaccine for human clinical trials

COVID-19 by the numbers in Ottawa (Ottawa Public Health data):

  • New COVID-19 cases: 62 new cases on Thursday
  • Total COVID-19 cases: 14,532
  • COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (previous seven days): 35.6
  • Positivity rate in Ottawa: 2.1 per cent (Feb. 17 – Feb. 23)
  • Reproduction Number: 1.02 (seven day average)

Testing:

Who should get a test?

Ottawa Public Health says there are five reasons to seek testing for COVID-19:

  • You are showing COVID-19 symptoms. OR
  • You have been exposed to a confirmed case of the virus, as informed by Ottawa Public Health or exposure notification through the COVID Alert app. OR
  • You are a resident or work in a setting that has a COVID-19 outbreak, as identified and informed by Ottawa Public Health. OR
  • You are eligible for testing as part of a targeted testing initiative directed by the Ministry of Health or the Ministry of Long-Term Care. OR
  • You have traveled to the U.K., or have come into contact with someone who recently traveled to the U.K., please go get tested immediately (even if you have no symptoms).

Where to get tested for COVID-19 in Ottawa:

There are several sites for COVID-19 testing in Ottawa. To book an appointment, visit https://www.ottawapublichealth.ca/en/shared-content/assessment-centres.aspx

  • The Brewer Ottawa Hospital/CHEO Assessment Centre: Open Monday to Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. and Friday to Sunday from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
  • COVID-19 Drive-thru assessment centre at National Arts Centre: Open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
  • The Moodie Care and Testing Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
  • The Heron Care and Testing Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
  • The Ray Friel Care and Testing Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

COVID-19 screening tool:

The COVID-19 screening tool for students heading back to in-person classes can be found here.

Symptoms:

Classic Symptoms: fever, new or worsening cough, shortness of breath

Other symptoms: sore throat, difficulty swallowing, new loss of taste or smell, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, pneumonia, new or unexplained runny nose or nasal congestion

Less common symptoms: unexplained fatigue, muscle aches, headache, delirium, chills, red/inflamed eyes, croup

St-Albert Cheese Co-op temporarily shuts down production following COVID-19 cases

The St-Albert Cheese Co-op east of Ottawa has temporarily closed its factory and factory store due to cases of COVID-19.

The company’s business development director Éric Léveillé tells CTV News Ottawa that both the factory and the factory store are closed after three employees tested positive for COVID-19 in the last week.

"We immediately quarantined 15 employees that were in close contact with case number one," said Léveillé.

"So far, the two other positive results are from the first group of 15."

The St-Albert Cheese Co-op says the Eastern Ontario Health Unit was at the facility on Thursday afternoon to test all 200 employees to make sure there are no other positive cases.

The St. Albert Cheese Co-op factory store will reopen on Saturday, Feb. 27. In a statement, the co-op says there will be no fresh curds or blocks available.

St. Albert Cheese Factory

COVID-19 variants likely to make up 40 per cent of Ontario cases by mid-March, hospitalizations expected to climb

New modelling data suggests highly-contagious COVID-19 variants are expected to make up about 40 per cent of all Ontario cases by the second week of March.

The new projections released Thursday predict the province could see about 4,000 new infections daily by the end of March in the worst-case scenario.

In a more likely scenario, Ontario could see about 2,500 cases a day within that time frame and in the best-case scenario, the number could decrease to about 500 daily infections.

Focus shifts to COVID-19 variants

35 straight days with fewer than 100 new cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa

Ottawa Public Health reported 62 new cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa on Thursday, as a key COVID-19 indicator continued to rise towards the "red-control" threshold.

Two new deaths linked to novel coronavirus were also announced.

Since the first case of COVID-19 in Ottawa on March 11, there have been 14,532 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 439 deaths.

Ottawa's COVID-19 rate increased to 35.6 cases per 100,000, up from 34.5 cases on Wednesday. The threshold to move into the red zone with new restrictions in Ontario is 40 cases per 100,000.

 

Ottawa Hospital to manufacture COVID-19 vaccine

Three COVID-19 vaccines will be manufactured at Ottawa's largest hospital for human clinical trials.

The Ottawa Hospital announced its Biotherapeutics Manufacturing Centre (BMC) will fill a critical gap in Canada's vaccine manufacturing capacity.

"I think it's very important that we have the capacity to be able to produce these kinds of products, particularly vaccines in the midst of the pandemic in Canada and be able to have control over that production," said Dr. Duncan Stewart in an interview with CTV News Ottawa.

The first COVID-19 vaccine that the Biotherapeutics Manufacturing Centre will produce is a DNA-based vaccine called Covigenix VAX-001, developed by Entos Pharmaceuticals in Alberta.

Ottawa Hospital Civic Campus