Coronavirus: What's happening around the world on Sept. 5

The latest:

• Ontario andQuebec reportlargestdaily increases in COVID-19 casesin six weeks.
• Newfoundland and Labrador reports first case in more than a week.
• India's number of coronavirus cases passes 4 million.
• Czech Republic imposes tougher restrictions amid record daily spike.

As Canadians settle into the last long weekend of the summer and many prepare for the start of school, the country's two most populous provinces are reporting their highest daily increases in cases of COVID-19 since late July.

Ontario reported 169 new confirmed cases on Saturday, while there were 175 new cases in Quebec and two deaths tied to the respiratory infection.

In Ontario, the largest counts for the day werein Peel Region with 46, Toronto with 42,Ottawa with 30and 19 in York Region, Health Minister Christine Elliott said on Twitter.

MostschoolsinOntario willopen for students on Tuesday, but schools in Quebec have been open for more than a week, and 46out of 3,100 schools in the province have at least one case of COVID-19 since then, according to government figures released Friday.

Quebec Health Minister Christian Dub said the number of cases are in line with what was expected and that in most of the 46cases, the staff or student was infected outside of school.

He would not specify how many cases there were in each school but said none had turned into outbreaks, with widespread transmission within a school.

Ontario Education Minister Stephen Lecce, in reaction to the Quebec figures, noted that Ontario has mandated masking in classrooms, while Quebec has not, and said more than 600 public health nurses will be stationed in schools this fall. Under Ontario's plan, students in grades 4 to 12 will be required to wear masks indoors, and younger students will be encouraged to do so. But individual school boards, including in Toronto, have voted to require masks for all students.

Since the start of the pandemic, there have been 63,292 confirmed cases in Quebec, and 5,769 people infected have died.

Ontario has now seen 43,003 cumulative confirmed cases of the virus since the outbreak began in late January, and 2,811 people have died.

Meanwhile,Newfoundland and Labrador reported its 1st case in more than a week, andManitoba reported 21 new infections.

"A key concern this past week has been the continuing increase in daily case counts," Canada's chief public health officer, Dr. Theresa Tam, said in a statement on Saturday.

"Although we are well below the almost 1,800 cases reported daily at the peak of the initial wave in early May, we have been seeing an increasing trend in this disease activity indicator.

"With 631 new cases reported across Canada yesterday, the most recent seven-day moving average now has us at 545 cases being reported daily. This exceeds the maximum number of daily cases reported during increased activity in mid-July." Tam said

WATCH |Tam offers advice on indoor gatherings this fall:

Dr Theresa Tam offers advice on indoor gatherings this fall

4 years ago

Duration 1:56

Canada's chief public health officer spoke with reporters Friday on Parliament Hill.

As of 5 p.m.ET on Saturday,Canada had 131,495 confirmed and presumptive coronavirus cases. Provinces and territories listed 116,136of those as recovered or resolved. ACBC News tallyof deaths based on provincial reports, regional health information and CBC's reporting stood at 9,183.

• What the level of COVID-19 immunity in Canada could mean for the vaccine hunt
• Ford takes aim at backyard parties after Ontario sees 148 new COVID-19 cases, nearly half in Peel
• Why millions of travellers have entered Canada despite COVID-19 travel restrictions
• Getting a flu shot during the COVID-19 era: Here's what you need to know
• For some immigrant and refugee families, back to school in a pandemic comes with additional stressors
• CRA says CERB payments will be deposited by the weekend

Here's what's happening around the world

According to the tally kept by Johns Hopkins University, the global total ofconfirmed coronavirus cases is now more than 26.6million.More than 875,000people havediedwhile 17.7million haverecovered.

The World Health Organization said it'snot expecting widespread vaccinations against COVID-19 until the middle of next year.

There are at least 176 potential vaccines at various stages of research around the world, butjust eight of them are in the final stage of human clinical trials, or Phase 3.

Dr.Margaret Harris of the WHO said this part of the process can't be rushed.All data from trials must be shared and compared, she said.

WATCH | Infectious diseasespecialist cautions against rushing vaccine development:

Infectious disease specialist says don't rush vaccine development

4 years ago

Duration 1:29

A coronavirus vaccine could be in circulation by mid-2021, says infectious disease specialist Dr. Michael Gardam, but he cautions against rushing the testing process.

Australia's coronavirus hot spot state of Victoria on Sunday extended a hard lockdown in its capital Melbourne by two weeks to the end of September as infection rates have declined more slowly than hoped.

State Premier Daniel Andrews on Sunday extended the hard lockdown, in place since Aug. 2, to Sept. 28 with a slight relaxation, and mapped out a gradual easing of restrictions over the following two months.

In Europe,the number of people infected with the coronavirus has continued to surge in the Czech Republic, surpassing 700 for the first time.Health authorities have already imposed new restrictive measures in the Czech capital, reacting to the spike. Starting on Wednesday, it is mandatory again to wear face masks in stores and shopping malls. At the same time, bars, restaurants and nightclubs have to be closed from midnight to 6 a.m.

In Asia,India's total number of coronavirus cases crossed fourmillion on Saturday. The country is leading the world in new infections and closing in on Brazil's total, which is the second highest in the world.Initially, the virus ravaged India's sprawling and often densely populated cities. It has since stretched to almost every state in the country, spreading through villages and smaller cities where access to health care is crippled.

In the Americas, the pandemic has hit Mexico so hard that the governments of several states ran out of death certificates.Officials sayfederal forms started running out about 15 to 20 days ago in at least three states Baja California, the State of Mexico and Mexico City and authorities say a million new forms have been printed and are being distributed.Mexico has suffered the fourth-highest level of COVID-19 deaths in the world.

Amid pandemic restrictions in Africa, some religious leaders and followerson the continent are speaking out or sneaking out to worship as they argue that limits on religion could lead to a crisis of faith.Some ministers in Nigeria Africa's most populous country have sparked a separate controversy for saying followers should continue paying their tithes into designated bank accounts, while Tanzanian President John Magufuli has alarmed health experts by asserting that divine power would offer protection from the virus.