Coronavirus: Canadian government to send support to virus-hit province of Ontario
- Ontario, Canada’s most populous province with 14 million people, has for the past few days been battling record coronavirus case numbers and hospitalisations
- The federal government will also send rapid Covid-19 tests to the areas of Ontario that have been the most affected by the pandemic
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on Sunday that the federal government will send resources and support to Ontario, the province battling a worrying spike in Covid-19 infections.
Ottawa will mobilise health professionals from different federal departments and deploy them to Ontario, particularly the Toronto region, where “the situation is most critical,” Trudeau said in a video posted to Twitter.
The government is also in discussion with multiple provinces, including Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, to free up personnel and equipment resources “over the coming days,” the prime minister said.
Ottawa will cover the transport costs and coordinate the transfer of carers from different provinces to Ontario, he said.
The federal government will also send rapid Covid-19 tests to the areas of Ontario that have been the most affected by the pandemic.
Ontario, Canada’s most populous province with 14 million people, has for the past few days been battling record coronavirus case numbers, hospitalisations and intensive care patients, all of which are threatening to overwhelm its health system.