Ontario child becomes York Region's first confirmed Omicron variant case
York Region Public Health confirmed its first positive case of the new Omicron variant on Friday.
According to York Region's Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Barry Pakes, a young child tested positive after a recent trip.
"It's a case among a person who is too young to be vaccinated who recently travelled to South Africa with a family member," Dr. Pakes said.
"That person has two household members who have also tested positive for COVID, but the screen is not yet available for Omicron."
Public health anticipates having the screening test back "soon," but could not provide a definite timeline.
While the screening has yet to confirm whether the other two individuals have the latest mutation of COVID-19, Dr. Pakes believes it is likely the region will have three Omicron cases.
Dr. Pakes said it was only a matter of time before the new variant made its way to the area.
"This was expected. It's not surprising at all," he stated.
"We've seen quite a few cases in Ontario, and Canada and throughout the world, and they are travel-related. There's no evidence of any transmission within York Region," he added.
Dr. Pakes said all three individuals are self-isolating in their home. He said he doesn't believe there is any risk to the community.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Weather alerts issued for 7 provinces, 1 territory
Warnings of up to 60 millimetres of rain and other alerts have been issued for seven Canadian provinces and one territory ahead of the Easter weekend.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Luxury cruise line selling world cruise suite for US$1.7 million
Luxury operator Regent Seven Seas Cruises is raising their price tag to eye-watering levels, with a suite on an upcoming 140-day world voyage costing US$1.7 million.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
A Filipino villager is nailed to a cross for the 35th time on Good Friday to pray for world peace
A Filipino villager has been nailed to a wooden cross for the 35th time to reenact Jesus Christ’s suffering in a brutal Good Friday tradition he said he would devote to pray for peace in Ukraine, Gaza and the disputed South China Sea.
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
'Oppenheimer' finally premieres in Japan to mixed reactions and high emotions
'Oppenheimer' finally premiered Friday in the nation where two cities were obliterated 79 years ago by the nuclear weapons invented by the American scientist who was the subject of the Oscar-winning film. Japanese filmgoers' reactions understandably were mixed and highly emotional.
Do these exercises for core strength if you can't stomach doing planks
Planks are one of the most effective exercises for strengthening your midsection, as they target all of your major core muscles: the transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, external obliques and internal obliques. Yet despite the popularity of various 10-minute plank challenges, planking is actually one of the most dreaded core exercises, according to many fitness experts.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.