'We must come together,' says Six Nations after 4th COVID-19 death

The Six Nations community is mourning the death of a fourth person due to COVID-19.

In a statement issued Friday, the Six Nations of the Grand River elected council extended its "heartfelt condolences to the families and friends affected by this loss."

"We must all come together to ensure that we don't lose any more community members to this virus. This past year has been incredibly difficult for Six Nations, but we must continue to persevere and protect one another Our community is resilient, and we will get through this crisis together."

The new death comes after the community experienced a surge that prompted warnings from election council and Ohsweken Public Health to stay home unless absolutely necessary.

As of Friday, the community had 114 active COVID-19 cases, and four people in hospital. There have been 383 cases reported there over the course of the pandemic and a total of four deaths.

On Monday, the elected council passed a motion to temporarily close its various departments for two weeks from Thursday to Mar.19.

The two-week closure will be reassessed before that date and could be extended. In the meantime, programs and services will be limited to urgent needs only.

Hamilton vaccine plan is 'flexible'

As the province announced plans to speed up vaccine delivery to Ontarians on Friday, Hamilton city spokesperson James Berry said Hamilton Public Health Services is "assessing what today's announcement means for our local plan and eagerly await increased vaccine supply for Hamilton."

"Hamilton Public Health Services' vaccination plan is in an evergreen state, ensuring that it remains flexible and adaptable to the vaccine supply and prescribed timelines by the Ontario government," he said.

As of the end of Thursday, Hamilton administered 41,360 doses of the vaccine.

The city reported64 new COVID cases on Friday, bringing the city's total to 10,687 (probable and confirmed cases). There were no new deaths.

The city currently has 398 people with active cases of the virus. The weekly rate of new cases per 100,000 population is 55.

The city has seen 81 cases screen positive for COVID variants, and four confirmed cases of B.1.1.7, the variant that originated in the United Kingdom.

More outbreaks in Hamilton

The city has two new outbreaks.

The Carlisle Retirement Residence and AbleLiving Services York Supportive Housing both have one resident with the virus respectively.

The outbreak at the Hamilton-Wentworth Detention Centre is at 67cases, while the outbreak at Macassa Lodge currentlythe city's longest-running activeoutbreak has seen 62 cases and 11 deaths.

There are also three new school outbreaks.

An outbreak was declared Cathy Wever Elementary School after twostudents tested positive for the virus. There's also a probable staff case.

St. Michael Catholic Elementary School also declared an outbreak after two students tested positive for COVID-19. One classroom has ben closed.

Hillfield Strathallan College had two middle school students test positive for the virus, leading to it being labelled an outbreak site.

Brant

The county of Brant is reporting five new cases. There are 41 active cases and a total of 1,509 cases.

Twelve people have died of the virus but no one is in hospital.

Brant has administered 9,388 vaccine doses.

Haldimand-Norfolk

Haldimand and Norfolk counties are reporting a total of 37 active cases of COVID-19, eight more than the previous day. The counties have seen a total of 1,449 cases and 39 total deaths.

There is currently one active outbreak in the two counties, at Cedar Cross Retirement Home in Simcoe, which has one staff case.

Halton

Halton Region is reporting 27 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, for a total of 9,655 cases since the start of the pandemic. However, there are three fewer active cases since yesterday, at 261, and no new deaths.

The region is reporting a total of 102 variant cases, five more than yesterday. Nineteen of those have been confirmed as variants of concern, while the rest have screened positive and are waiting to be confirmed.

Niagara

Niagara Region reported 22 new cases on Friday, to a total case count of 8,690. The region had 171 active cases, an increase of four from the previous day. There were no new deaths.

The region says it administered 246vaccine doses on Friday.

On Friday, the region announced it will begin booking vaccination appointments for people aged 80 and older who are currently in the hospital or who have been in hospital overnight in the past six months.

"We are taking this interim measure, while Niagara Region Public Health completes planning for mass vaccination sites, to get vaccines into the arms of our community's most vulnerable at the earliest opportunity," said Linda Boich, Niagara Health executive vice-president, in the release.

"Our hospital team will reach out directly to these people by telephone to schedule their COVID-19 vaccination appointments."

Healthcare workers in Niagara continue to be vaccinated as well.