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Tag: Canada

Topic: Ottawa-GatineauView all posts for the topic: Ottawa-Gatineau

Special air quality statement in effect for eastern Ontario, western Quebec

Published June 5, 2025

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Published by: CTV News
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By Toula Mazloum

A special air quality statement is in effect for eastern Ontario and western Quebec.

The statement was issued by Environment Canada Thursday, saying smoke caused by wildfires is expected to cause poor air quality and reduced visibility over the area tonight into Friday morning — the health risk will be high at these times.

“As smoke levels increase, health risks increase. Limit time outdoors. Consider reducing or rescheduling outdoor sports, activities and events,” reads the statement.

“You may experience mild and common symptoms such as eye, nose and throat irritation, headaches or a mild cough. More serious but less common symptoms include wheezing, chest pains or severe cough. If you think you are having a medical emergency, seek immediate medical assistance.”

The air quality statement extends as far west as Lake Huron, south into Toronto and Windsor, and north of Gatineau, Que.

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Topic: measlesView all posts for the topic: measles

Ontario confirms death of infant infected with measles

Published June 5, 2025

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Published by: CTV News
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By Joshua Freeman

An infant in southwestern Ontario who contracted measles from their mother before birth and was born prematurely has died, Ontario’s chief medical officer of health says.

The child’s mother had not been vaccinated against the viral illness, Dr. Kieran Moore said in his statement.

While measles can be fatal, especially for young children, Moore noted the child also faced other “serious medical complications.”

“While measles may have been a contributing factor in both the premature birth and death, the infant also faced other serious medical complications unrelated to the virus,” Moore said.

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Topic: wildfiresView all posts for the topic: wildfires

Federal government to match Red Cross donations to help wildfire victims

Published June 3, 2025

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Published by: CBC News
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The federal government says it will match donations made to the Canadian Red Cross as wildfires tear across the Prairies, forcing thousands from their homes.

Speaking on Parliament Hill Tuesday, Emergency Management Minister Eleanor Olszewski said the money will go toward wildfire relief and disaster recovery.

The provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba will also match donations, she said.

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Topic: climate crisisView all posts for the topic: climate crisis

Much of Manitoba under air quality warnings as wildfires rage

Published June 2, 2025

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Published by: CTV News
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Air quality warnings have been issued for a large swath of Manitoba, though rain could bring some much-needed relief.

Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) upgraded a number of air quality statements to warnings Monday morning in a large portion of southern Manitoba, including Winnipeg, Steinbach, and Lac du Bonnet.

These areas join much of northern Manitoba, which have been under air quality warnings for days due to wildfires burning in the region and in northern Saskatchewan.

However, the weather agency notes smoke will improve with rain forecast through southern Manitoba on Monday, while northern communities under wildfire threat will likely have to wait until the weekend for precipitation.

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Topic: ManitobaView all posts for the topic: Manitoba

‘Very high risk’ air quality in Brandon, as smoke persists

Published May 31, 2025

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Published by: The Brandon Sun
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By Abiola Odutola

The Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) for Brandon reached 10+, indicating a “very high risk” level on Saturday morning, as thick smoke was expected to linger in the air until Saturday night.

Environment Canada’s forecast anticipates that these hazardous conditions will persist through Saturday night, with only a slight improvement expected, dropping to a “moderate risk” (AQHI 6) by Sunday morning and a “high risk” (AQHI 7) by Sunday night.

The elevated readings are the result of thick wildfire smoke that drifted into Brandon Friday evening and remains heavy over the city Saturday morning. The smoke originates from wildfires burning in northern Manitoba and northern Saskatchewan and has led Environment Canada to issue a special air quality statement for the city.

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Topic: SaskatchewanView all posts for the topic: Saskatchewan

Wildfire smoke descends on Saskatoon

Published May 30, 2025

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Published by: CTV News
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By Rory MacLean

Saskatoon was under an air quality advisory Friday morning, as wildfires raging in northern Alberta and Saskatchewan sent smoke across the southern parts of the province.

Those who left a window open overnight likely woke up to the familiar smell of a campfire, but Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) is advising residents to close their windows and limit strenuous outdoor activities or exercise while the system of air pollution passes through.

“Protect your indoor air from wildfire smoke. Actions can include using a clean, good quality air filter in your ventilation system and/or a certified portable air cleaner that can filter fine particles,” the statement said.

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New COVID strain found in Montreal wastewater: health ministryElectron microscope image of SARS-CoV-2 virus particles. Virus particles are shown emerging from the surface of cells cultured in the lab. Image captured and colourized at NIAID’s Rocky Mountain Laboratories in Hamilton, Montana. Photo by: NIAID. Creative Commons CC BY 2.0 DEED Attribution 2.0 Generic license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/.
Topic: QuebecView all posts for the topic: Quebec

New COVID strain found in Montreal wastewater: health ministry

Published May 29, 2025

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Published by: Montreal Gazette
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By Leora Schertzer

SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, has mutated into two new variants that are circulating across Asia, Europe and North America, and Quebec’s public health authority warns one of the strains was detected in Montreal wastewater data.

The variant found in Quebec, XFG, has also been detected in wastewater in other parts of Canada, the United States, and Europe. Another new strain, NB.1.8.1, is associated with a rise in COVID cases and hospitalizations in China, Hong Kong, India, Taiwan, Thailand, and Singapore, according to Marie-Pierre Blier, a spokesperson from the health ministry.

Although XFG has made its way to Quebec, public health authorities assure there is no need to panic. Blier wrote in an email that it hasn’t markedly impacted public health, adding that the ministry continues to monitor the situation closely.

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Topic: vaccinesView all posts for the topic: vaccines

Almost 70 per cent of Canadians surveyed want child vaccines to be mandatory: poll

Published May 29, 2025

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Published by: The Canadian Press
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By Hannah Alberga

A new poll suggests nearly 70 per cent of Canadians support mandatory childhood vaccinations, but at least one public health official says she’s uncomfortable with the idea of forcing parents to immunize their kids.

The Angus Reid Institute survey landed Thursday as Public Health Ontario said 93 new measles cases have emerged in the province over the past week, bringing the total number of infections there to 1,888 since October.

The poll found 69 per cent of respondents said proof of immunization should be required for kids to attend daycare and school. That’s an increase from the 55 per cent of respondents who said the same thing last year, before a measles outbreak emerged in multiple provinces and infected mostly unvaccinated infants, kids and teens.

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Topic: British ColumbiaView all posts for the topic: British Columbia

BC Won’t Require Measles Vaccination for Schools

Published May 29, 2025

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Published by: The Tyee
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By Michelle Gamage

Canada is in the middle of the largest measles outbreak it has seen in generations, with 2,515 cases so far this year as of May 17, which is the most recent data reported by Health Canada as of Monday.

Despite the spread of the disease B.C. is not considering making measles immunization mandatory for attending school, as it is in Ontario and New Brunswick, the Health Ministry told The Tyee in an emailed statement.

“There is no requirement from the province for students to be vaccinated to attend school, or that students’ immunization records be provided as part of school registration,” the ministry said.

Instead its strategy is mostly a reactive one, where it will use data to respond to outbreaks and exposures. B.C. will also encourage people to get vaccinated and will open school-based immunization clinics in some areas with low vaccination rates.

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Topic: vaccinesView all posts for the topic: vaccines

COVID vaccine ‘strongly recommended’ during pregnancy, Canadian doctors say

Published May 28, 2025

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Published by: CTV News / The Canadian Press
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TORONTO — Canada’s gynecologists say COVID-19 vaccination “remains safe and strongly recommended” during pregnancy and while breastfeeding.

The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada issued the assurance Wednesday, a day after U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — a longtime anti-vaccine activist — declared the shot is no longer recommended for healthy children and pregnant women south of the border.

Pregnant women who become infected with COVID-19 are at higher risk of severe illness requiring hospitalization and intensive care than women who are not pregnant, the SOGC said.

Getting the COVID-19 vaccine also helps protect against serious complications associated with the virus, such as preterm birth, it said.

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Topic: OntarioView all posts for the topic: Ontario

Ontario government exempts disability benefit as income

Published May 27, 2025

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Published by: CTV News
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By Reta Ismail, Lauren Kuivenhoven

The Ontario government announced today that the Canada Disability Benefit (CDB) will be exempted as income.

“In a time of unprecedented economic uncertainty brough on by US tariffs and trade barriers, our government is taking action to keep costs down and protect Ontario families,” the provincial minister of children, community and social services said in a statement.

This decision will help the most vulnerable, the statement continued. People who rely on social assistance will receive the benefit without reduction in their social assistance payments.

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Topic: ME/CFSView all posts for the topic: ME/CFS

Sick and tired: More than 20,000 Manitobans suffer from ME/CFS, a long-term chronic disease

Published May 26, 2025

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Published by: Winnipeg Free Press
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By AV Kitching

There is a scene in a season 5 episode of ’80s sitcom The Golden Girls where one of the main characters, Dorothy, who has been…

Continue readingSick and tired: More than 20,000 Manitobans suffer from ME/CFS, a long-term chronic disease
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Topic: researchView all posts for the topic: research

Scientists have lost their jobs or grants in US cuts. Foreign universities want to hire them

Published May 25, 2025

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Published by: The Associated Press
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By Christina Larson, Adithi Ramakrishnan, Jamey Keaten

As the Trump administration cut billions of dollars in federal funding to scientific research, thousands of scientists in the U.S. lost their jobs or grants…

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Topic: measlesView all posts for the topic: measles

Measles cases increase by 173 in Ontario, bringing outbreak’s total close to 1,800

Published May 22, 2025

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Published by: The Canadian Press
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By Nicole Ireland

TORONTO – Public Health Ontario says 173 more people have been infected with measles in the province over the past week, bringing the number of cases to 1,795 since the outbreak began last October.

“That’s 173 more cases than we want to see,” said Dr. Sarah Wilson, a public health physician at the agency.

Public Health Ontario’s weekly measles report, released Thursday, said the virus continues to spread primarily among people who have not been vaccinated.

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Topic: measlesView all posts for the topic: measles

Ontario reports nearly 200 new measles cases as virus spreads across Canada

Published May 8, 2025

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Published by: CBC News / The Canadian Press
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By Hannah Alberga

Health officials say measles infected 197 more people in Ontario over the last week as the highly contagious disease emerged in new parts of the country.

That brings the province’s tally of probable and confirmed cases to 1,440 since an outbreak began in October.

Public Health Ontario’s measles report says there have been 101 hospitalizations, including 75 children. Eight patients have been in intensive care.

Nova Scotia and Northwest Territories each reported measles cases earlier this week, marking their first since this outbreak began.

Alberta reported yesterday that its overall case count had reached nearly 300 since mid-March, including three patients under the age of 18 in intensive care.

Saskatchewan updated its cumulative count to 27 cases today, a day after Manitoba reported it had reached 24 cases.

Measles has mostly infected unvaccinated children, infants and teenagers, with almost 500 cases in Ontario’s southwestern public health unit.

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Topic: Nova ScotiaView all posts for the topic: Nova Scotia

1 case of measles confirmed in Nova Scotia

Published May 6, 2025

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Published by: CBC News
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By Carolyn Ray

Nova Scotia is confirming its first case of measles.

Dr. Robert Strang, the chief medical officer of health, told a news conference Tuesday that the patient is an adult in Halifax who recently travelled to the United States. They went to the emergency department at the QEII hospital in Halifax on Sunday night.

“We were well prepared for this,” Strang said. “Appropriate steps were taken very quickly when this person came in for care to minimize exposure.”

Strang said the patient had one dose of the measles vaccine when they were younger, but did not receive the second. The Health Department said in a news release that “people generally need two [doses] to be fully vaccinated” against measles.

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Topic: Northwest TerritoriesView all posts for the topic: Northwest Territories

Measles exposure advisories sent to some Yellowknife parents

Published May 4, 2025

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Published by: Cabin Radio
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By Ollie Williams

Letters warning of a “confirmed case of measles” were sent to parents of various Yellowknife schools on Sunday evening.

Initially, families at St Patrick High School and Weledeh Catholic School reported receiving an advisory that exposure occurred at St Pat’s – including areas shared with Weledeh – from 8am till 5:40pm on each of April 28, April 30 and May 1.

“All persons present at this venue during the time period are considered to be exposed and must follow public health guidance,” read the letter, issued by the NWT’s chief public health officer, Dr Kami Kandola.

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Ottawa: Contact councillors — save our wastewater monitoring!Image of a chart with a plot of virus concentrations over time. Navy blue background with white text reading: Save our science — protect Ottawa's wastewater monitoring! Text in red: No data.
Topic: take actionView all posts for the topic: take action

Ottawa: Contact councillors — save our wastewater monitoring!

Published May 2, 2025

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📣 Let municipal councillors know you want funding for wastewater monitoring to continue

✉️ Send letters to municipal councillors in Ottawa to voice your support for wastewater monitoring. Use our online tool to send emails.

Why take action? The funding for Ottawa’s wastewater monitoring program is currently set to expire in September 2025. Wastewater monitoring is an essential public health tool that provides insights into the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and other viruses in Ottawa. We need an early warning system to inform everyone about the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 subvariants, influenza, avian flu, RSV, mpox, and other viruses.

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