TORONTO -- Ontario Premier Doug Ford says more businesses will be closing in the province in the wake of grim projections about the spread of COVID-19.

Ford says the new closures will take effect at 11:59 p.m. on Saturday and will include all industrial construction except for essential projects such as hospitals.

The announcement comes after public health officials released figures showing between 3,000 and 15,000 could die in Ontario over the full course of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The same projections showed the death toll could have reached 100,000 if no action had been taken.

Ford says the figures show that physical distancing saves lives and the Progressive Conservative government is prepared to do whatever it takes to protect Ontarians.

The province has recorded more than 3,200 cases of COVID-19 as of today, including 67 deaths.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 3, 2020.