Novel Coronavirus COVID-19 (nCoV-2019)

[lenaitch]

Cottage real estate market heats up with more Canadians working remotely

Cottage real estate market heats up with more Canadians working remotely

While the COVID-19 pandemic has damaged much of the Canadian economy, one Ontario real estate broker says the province's cottage market is thriving as people living in cities and working from home look to relocate.

www.ctvnews.ca

It will be interesting to see how this plays out long term. I've lived in traditional 'cottage country', and it is a completely different world in February, and I wonder how much homework potential buyers will be doing. Factors such as questionable Internet access, long power outtages and picking up a jug of milk become more compelling in the dead of winter. We have friends who built a lakefront home and, while they embraced the isolation of being the only humans on the lake, he was responsible for ploughing the last kilometer of road. A new neighbour here decided to retire to their cottage in Haliburton, but changed their mind after the first winter.

There are a number of media stories of 'toys' (pool, ATVs, etc.) flying off shelves, and I'm wondering if there will be a buyer's market on used products a year or two from now.

 

[W. K. Lis]

Unlike in the States.

Toronto hospital's ICU has no COVID-19 patients for first time in months

See link.

Humber River Hospital celebrated a big victory on Friday, announcing that its intensive care unit has zero COVID-19 patients for the first time since March.

"Wow!! Today is the first day since Mar 14th that our Intensive Care Unit are #COVIDー19 patient free! Thank you to the 6th-floor staff and physicians that have bonded together and provided exceptional care in this pandemic. Today is a day to celebrate at #HRH," the hospital posted on Twitter.

In an interview with CTV News Toronto, Dr. Jamie Spiegelman, an internal medicine and critical care specialist at the hospital, described how staff managed to reach the milestone.

At the beginning of the pandemic, Spiegelman said everyone was stressed and afraid of the novel coronavirus because there were many unknowns about it. Many were scared to go into patient rooms.

"We were not sure how contagious it was. We were not sure if our PPE was good enough to protect us," he said.

"For the first two to four weeks, sometime at the end of March and early April, we were fearful that we would get COVID from our patients."

However, as doctors learned more about the virus and how to prevent from contracting it, Spiegelman that they have become quite comfortable in treating COVID-19 patients.

"Most of my days are spent in the ICU. The last three to four months, we've been relatively busy," he said.

"We've been quite full for most of those months in terms of having both COVID patients and having non-COVID patients."

At the pandemic's peak, Spiegelman said some patients were needed to be sent to other hospitals that had more capacity. He noted that at one point, nearly half of the ICU beds had COVID-19 patients.

In the last couple of weeks, however, he observed that the ICU had become less busy until Friday when it recorded zero coronavirus patients.

Even though he considered it a big victory, Spiegelman said what was more important was the small victories. These include patients who survived COVID-19 and leave the hospital.

"Everyone's quite happy that we don't have to deal with COVID-19 patients and that we kind of gone back to our normal routine," he said.

"But then, at the same time, we're still using all precautions because we don't know when it's going to come back."


Flattened the curve

The public health measures introduced by the government were very helpful in stopping the further spread of COVID-19, Spiegelman said.

"The precautions that the government put on society and including physical distancing, staying at home, washing your hands, wearing a mask, have obviously worked to the point where phase one of the pandemic has really calmed down."

He noted that they continue to see younger patients with COVID-19 coming in the emergency room, but they are not being admitted to the ICU.

On Sunday, Ontario health officials reported fewer than 200 new cases of the virus for the sixth consecutive day. The province's health minister said the positivity rate remains at "all-time lows."

The province also said it is continuing to see a decline in hospitalizations.

"What it has shown is that flattening the curve has really worked," Spiegelman said.

"If we didn't do physical distancing initially, and if we didn't wash your hands and if we didn't stay at home from work, the hospital resources, the ICUs, the wards would not have been able to deal with so many patients."

Ready for the second wave

The doctor noted that there has never been a pandemic where there wasn't a second wave that's why hospital staff are taking a cautious approach.

The hospital is located in the northwestern part of Toronto, where five neighbourhoods have recorded more than 400 COVID-19 infections since the outbreak began

"I think what we've learned from the first round is that we're ready for it," Spiegelman said. "We know what to expect, and we know how to treat these patients."

 

[tripwire]

Wearing a mask is not about protecting yourself; it's about protecting others from you. Refusing on the basis of my own health is mine to risk is pretty much an anti-social FU to others at this point. There should be a special, non--ventilated car for these folks.

Speaking of non-compliance with mask-wearing directives:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1279615522284474368

Like I said, anti-social FU with a heavy dose of performativity. I broke my finger, when to the ER, refused to wear a mask when asked to by medical professionals but look, I am going to record it all, dump it on Twitter and get ratioed! Another chair-girl.

AoD

The lady is incredibly stupid, but from https://www.toronto.ca/home/covid-1...y-laws/mandatory-mask-or-face-covering-bylaw/ - masks will not be required in "hospitals, independent health facilities" which seems REALLY odd to me. It's really mixed messaging when one government agency says it's not required, and another says it is.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

The lady is incredibly stupid, but from https://www.toronto.ca/home/covid-1...y-laws/mandatory-mask-or-face-covering-bylaw/ - masks will not be required in "hospitals, independent health facilities" which seems REALLY odd to me. It's really mixed messaging when one government agency says it's not required, and another says it is.

Doesn't matter - they just need to follow instructions on the ground. The city not requiring them doesn't mean the facilities aren't free to make that a requirement.

AoD

 

[Richard White]

Doesn't matter - they just need to follow instructions on the ground. The city not requiring them doesn't mean the facilities aren't free to make that a requirement.

AoD

Not to mention Provincial legislation overrides municipal by-laws.

 

[Northern Light]

Another published study, repeating what I said here more than 2 months ago; the risk of transmission from objects/surfaces is negligible.

https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S1473-3099(20)30561-2

I'm not taking any great credit here, except for being up on the research as it is published.

What irks me is that researchers are still learning this when their colleagues published in peer-reviewed journals months ago.

 

[Towered]

Another published study, repeating what I said here more than 2 months ago; the risk of transmission from objects/surfaces is negligible.

https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S1473-3099(20)30561-2

I'm not taking any great credit here, except for being up on the research as it is published.

What irks me is that researchers are still learning this when their colleagues published in peer-reviewed journals months ago.

And all that extra time I spend wiping all my groceries with lysol wipes...

 

[gabe]

Hmmm, I wonder how this varies by time of day and area of the City?

As I work from home, for the most part, and drive, I've been taking transit considerably less than usual the last while.

For the first time, in more than 2 weeks I took transit today.

I was thinking about the compliance rate and tracked it on my subway car.

22/27 were wearing masks on my trip west for an 81.5% compliance rate. (obviously this will have varied slightly station to station)

I sampled again going back east later in the day, and got a similar number 25/31 or 80.6%

I found the number pretty similar on the one bus trip down 18/21(85.7%); better in my section (couldn't see the whole unit) on the LRT where I saw only one maskless person in 14.(92.9%)

While a later bus trip saw 15/18 (83.3%) wearing masks, though one who wasn't thought it was cool to chat away on her phone mask-free.............she was ......admonished.

***

In a really immaterial aside..............one guy I saw on transit today had something going on I've never seen before...........

Not one.........not two.........not 3............but 4 birds, not caged, 1 on each shoulder and one on each forearm, chirping away.

Ok, then.

At Walmart and Canadian Tire today. Everyone had masks on! Young girl working at Canadian Tire stood her ground and kicked some red neck out the door for not wearing a mask. He was muttering something about Communism and flipped her the middle finger, she yelled back "you're now banned from the store don't ever come back"! i feel sorry for the retail workers who have to deal with 'anti-maskers nuts' every single day.

Yeah just when you think you have seen it all on the TTC. I once saw a guy on the subway feeding KFC coleslaw to an iguana on his lap.

 

[gabe]

Another anti masker caught in the wild.

Toronto woman goes full Karen over fruit market's face mask policy

With masks becoming mandatory in most enclosed public spaces this week, face coverings are top of mind for many Toronto residents — though some are...

www.blogto.com

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

Haha, going to the OHRC because you had to mask up - go right ahead.

AoD

 

[Richard White]

At Walmart and Canadian Tire today. Everyone had masks on! Young girl working at Canadian Tire stood her ground and kicked some red neck out the door for not wearing a mask. He was muttering something about Communism and flipped her the middle finger, she yelled back "you're now banned from the store don't ever come back"! i feel sorry for the retail workers who have to deal with 'anti-maskers nuts' every single day.

Yeah just when you think you have seen it all on the TTC. I once saw a guy on the subway feeding KFC coleslaw to an iguana on his lap.

Which Crappy Tire was this? I know the one at Yonge and Davenport is not that strict nor are the walmarts in Scarborough.

 

[W. K. Lis]

Man breaks TTC bus window after being denied entry due to COVID-19 capacity

From link.

Toronto police are asking for the public’s help identifying a man who broke a TTC bus window when refused entry due to COVID-19 passenger capacity rules.

Police said a TTC bus was at the intersection of Don Mills Road and Sheppard Avenue East on Thursday, June 18, just before 10 a.m.

A man attempted to enter the bus but was refused because it was at capacity.

He became involved in a dispute with the bus driver.

He walked away from the bus, then struck and broke one of the bus front windows with his hand.

He fled eastbound on Sheppard Avenue East.

A man is described as in his 30s with a heavy build. He was wearing a red T-shirt, black shorts and blue and black shoes. He had a black duffel bag and black headphones.

Police released security camera footage of the suspect.

Anyone with information is urged to contact police at 416-808-3200, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-8477 or online at www.222tips.com

Toronto police released this security camera image of a man after a man broke a TTC bus window with his hand after being denied entry to the bus due to COVID-19 capacity rules. - Toronto Police Service

 

[tayser]

News from the southern hemisphere.

If anything, this pandemic has been really good (not in a good way!) at exposing ugly underbellies of societies around the world. Singapore's a really good example: its citizens are (were?) pretty much fine but the virus was running rampant through foreign worker dorms.

Here in Australia, we've had a hotel quarantine system in place for all international travellers arriving since April - basically, you are bussed from the airport to hotel to do mandatory quarantine for 14 days. Paid for the by the government but in Victoria, the government has used a security company that appears to have not given much of a shit re: instructing and enforcing employees to do the right thing.

So much so we had a breach ~4 weeks ago and now we're seeing 70-120 cases a day in community spread... which for all intents and purposes is actually a new angle on the pandemic for us. March/April first wave for us was all international travellers and their close contacts.... curve flattened through test and trace. Now we have widespread community transmission that's pretty much been common everywhere else.

Tonight, the Victorian-New South Wales border is shutting for the first since........... the Spanish flu epidemic 100 years ago.

Those security guards where the sanitary breach occurred? Basically lower socio-economic people living either in public housing or overcrowded housing.

12 postcodes / 36 suburbs in the north and north-west of Melbourne (~350,000 out of 5 million people) are back on stay at home and only leave for 4 basic reasons orders (to get food/supplies, medical appointments/test, work if you can't work from home or exercise) and 8 public housing buildings on two different estates are in total lockdown.

Loosening of restrictions has now been put on hold.

 

[Johnny Au]

There are a number of media stories of 'toys' (pool, ATVs, etc.) flying off shelves, and I'm wondering if there will be a buyer's market on used products a year or two from now.

Don't forget the hottest of all "toys": the Nintendo Switch, which became sold out in many retailers (and I am a Switch owner since early 2017 when there was the initial Switch shortage).

 

[44 North]

Someone gave me an anti-mask pamphlet today. I took it out of interest.

Now I know I'll get some flack for this. But I do see where people are coming from regarding breathing issues with it on. I have had zero respiratory issues like asthma and am generally fit as a fiddle. But when I wear a mask I have trouble catching my breath. Sanding drywall or something I don't like it. Also in the grocery store today seemed like it was 50/50 masks-no masks - and that includes the employees.