COVID-19 pandemic in the Regional Municipality of Peel

• February 29: Peel Public Health learns that someone with COVID-19 had attended work in the Region for three days, before self-isolating.[4] The workplace was not in Brampton, and the worker lived outside of Peel.[5]

• March 5: Peel confirms its first case of COVID-19, a Mississauga man who had travelled on the Grand Princess cruise ship from February 11 to 21.[6] His wife was confirmed as the second carrier.[7]
• March 8: A man returning from Germany tests positive for COVID-19 at Brampton Civic Hospital.[8]
• March 9: Dr. Jessica Hopkins, the region's Medical Officer of Health, announces her departure. Dr. Lawrence Loh assumes the role of interim Medical Officer of Health.[9]
• March 10: An entire floor of Royal Bank of Canada's Meadowvale office tower is told to self-quarantine, after a worker tests positive.[10]
• March 21: Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown comments in an interview that he expects that COVID-19 will "not be a matter of weeks, it's going to be a matter of months," contrary to most government suggestions at the time.[3]
• March 23: Mississauga declares a state of emergency.[11]
• March 24: Brampton declares a state of emergency.[12]
• March 25: Liberal MP for Brampton West Kamal Khera tests positive for COVID-19.[13]
• Peel Addiction Assessment and Referral Centre, which has 700 clients, restructured its interactions due to physical distancing requirements.[14]

• April 9: Brampton Civic Hospital announced the death of an environmental services associate. He was the first hospital employee in Ontario to die of the disease.[15]
• April 18: Mississauga reports 137 new cases of COVID-19, which would remain its daily peak as of July 15.[16]
• April 27: Personal support worker Arlene Reid, who worked at multiple venues in Peel, dies of COVID-19. She is the first long-term care worker death in Peel. Her daughter alleges that two shifts at Holland Christian Home were worked without PPE being offered, which the LTC denies.[17]

• May 25: After Premier Doug Ford mentions that the province has "hot spots" for COVID, "lighting up like a Christmas tree," the Ministry of Health revealing that Peel Region is among the hotspots. Ford later narrowed that to Brampton.[18]
• May: Mississauga Food Bank looked to raise $840,000 in response to the pandemic. Basketball player RJ Barrett donated $100,000.[19]

• June 6, 7, 17: Black Lives Matter-related protests held at Brampton's Chinguacousy Park, Mississauga's Celebration Square, and the Peel District School Board headquarters. At a June 24 press conference, Dr. Lawrence Loh commented that there was no evidence that these events impacted case numbers.[20]
• June 24: Peel Region was given the go-ahead to enter Stage 2 of reopening.[21]
• July 25: Over 200 people attend a house party in Brampton. The event is broken up by bylaw officers; the organizer was issued a $880 fine. Premier Ford calls the hosts and guests "a bunch of yahoos", suggesting that they should receive the $100,000 fine, through the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act.[22]

• July 2: Dr. Lawrence Loh accepts the position of Medical Officer of Health on a permanent basis.[23]
• July 15: Peel Health reports no new cases of COVID-19 in Mississauga, for the first time since March 22.[16]
• July 31: Peel Region was allowed by the provincial government to enter Stage 3 of reopening.[24]

• October 10: Due to an increase in cases, Peel region was knocked back to a modified Stage 2, along with Toronto, Ottawa - and as of October 19, 2020, York Region. The measures included the closure of indoor dining in bars and restaurants, and the closure of gyms, movie theatres and casinos. The measures are in effect for 28 days.[25][26]

• November 6: Due to move out of the modified Stage 2, Premier Ford announced that Peel Region would instead move into a Red-level in the provinces new colour-coded restriction system.[27]
• November 7: The region of Peel legislated restrictions that are more stringent than the provincial red-level restrictions.[28]
• November 18: Some 58 staff at Tyndall Senior's Village in Mississauga have active cases of COVID, as well as 30 residents. In a two-week period, 171 total cases had been identified.[29]
• November 20: Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced Peel Region along with nearby Toronto would be placed on the lockdown category according to the new response framework, effective November 23. Under these orders, bars and restaurants would be restricted to take-out, drive-thru and delivery services only, no private gatherings outside of one's household, cinemas, casinos, gyms and fitness centres must close. Non-essential retail stores will be shuttered, with curb-side pickup and delivery services allowed, and sports and recreation activities must suspend operations. The film and television industry can remain open under Control (red) level restrictions. Schools and childcare would remain open while post-secondary education would move into virtual learning (with exceptions for those that require in-person training).[30][31][32][33][34][35][36]

• December 9:
  • Health Canada approved the Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for use in Canada.[37]
  • Trillium Health Partners announces that 36 staff at its three sites, two of which are in Mississauga, are self-isolating after contracting COVID-19.[38]
• December 10: The Globe and Mail reports that, while Toronto and Ottawa will receive vaccines from Ontario early enough to begin immunization on December 15, Peel would have to wait. At the time, Ottawa was not under lockdown; the province claims its priority spot was in order to test how it would ship the product.[39] Mayor Brown tells CityNews that he expects this to be corrected immediately, lest it show favoritism to other regions over data. An epidemiologist in the same story asked rhetorically why Peel hasn't received additional resources and surveillance testing.[40]
• December 16: Mississauga News reports that Trillium Health Partners has transferred 30 patients since November 30, amid a COVID-19 surge.[41]
• December 17:
  • Brampton releases a short film, The Spread, hoping to "drive an emotional response from viewers."[42]
  • A source tells the National Post that Amazon warehouses in Ontario have seen more than 400 COVID-19 cases. Peel has four warehouses for the company, and while the Region does not disclose the location of outbreaks, give of the top six workplace outbreaks were at "distribution centres."[43]
• December 21: Trillium Health opens a COVID vaccine clinic. Bella Rego, a registered nurse at Camilla Care Community, is the first recipient. Rego had spent a month in self-isolation at home, after testing positive for the virus in April.[44]
• December 22:
  • A vaccine clinic opens at Brampton Civic Hospital. Vilma Whyte, a personal support worker from Tullamore Care Community, is the first to receive the vaccine.[45] The hospital aimed for 300 vaccinations a day in coming weeks.[46]
  • Trillium Health issues a press release looking to hire doctors, for "temporary pandemic needs across our sites."[47]
• December 30: Toronto Star publishes an opinion piece, noting among other things that warehouse workers are generally temporary agency employees, without basic benefits or workplace protections like paid sick leave. Amazon employs based on speed, not factoring in the impact of physical distancing requirements.[1]
• December 31: Personal support workers stop attending the home of a senior in Mississauga, after he and his wife became ill with COVID-19. Having late-stage dementia and with after-effects of a stroke, the man requires two PSWs to visit a washroom, and so for days was left soiled in his home.[48]
• In an effort to discourage gatherings on the holiday, it was announced that Brampton Transit, Miway (Mississauga Transit), (like other surrounding transit agencies in the Greater Toronto Area, such as Metrolinx (which operates GO Transit), York Region Transit, Oakville Transit, and the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC)) that they will not offer extended or fare free evening or overnight transit on New Year's Eve as they have done in past years.[49][50][51][52][53]

• January 5: Maureen Ambersley, a registered practical nurse at Extendicare Mississauga, dies of COVID-19. She is the second long-term care employee to die in Peel, the fourth member of the Service Employees International Union.[54]

Outbreaks of COVID have been declared at a number of health facilities. As of May 8, outbreaks were declared at:[62]

• Bough Beeches Place
• Burton Manor
• Camilla Care Community; As of May 7, 48 residents had died of COVID-19.[63]
• Cooksville Care Centre
• Erin Mills Lodge Nursing Home
• Extendicare Brampton
• Faith Manor Nursing Home
• Grace Manor
• Greenway by Revera Retirement Village
• Ivan Franko Homes
• King Gardens Place Retirement Home
• Malton Village
• Maple Grove Care Community
• Peel Manor; At least one resident has died at the facility, in mid-April 2020.[64]
• Regency Retirement Residence
• Sheridan Villa
• Silverthorn Care Community
• Sunrise of Mississauga
• Tall Pines
• Trillium Health Partners, Credit Valley Hospital
  • An outbreak was declared March 27,[62] and reported by April 1, after four patients in the rehab unit tested positive.[65] The outbreak ended on May 8.[62]
• Trillium Health Partners, Mississauga Hospital
• Villa Forum
• Village of Erin Meadows
• Village of Sandalwood Park

In late April, the dormitory-format Ontario Correctional Institute in Brampton was closed after 60 inmates and eight workers tested positive. Inmates were moved to the Toronto South Detention Centre, to allow for a deep clean, and for staff to self-isolate for two weeks.[66][67][68][69]

In early December 2020, Brampton's Hawthorn Woods Care Community confirmed 84 active cases among residents and staff.[70]

Between March 2 and 4, someone with COVID-19 travelled on MiWay transit.[73] This was followed by someone with the virus on a GO Transit leaving Toronto Pearson International Airport. Following this incident, Peel Public Health advised that public transit was still a safe option, and Brampton and Mississauga both announced "enhanced cleaning practices."[74]

MiWay Mississauga and Brampton Transit were made free starting March 21, with most express services cancelled. Boarding was to take place by the rear doors.[75][76]

As of December 28, 18 Mississauga Fire Department staff had tested positive for COVID-19, with another 60 in self-isolation.[77] The Mississauga Fire Fighters Association correlated this in part to an autumn policy change around sick days; the City commissioner contests that there was "no change in policy."[78]

In mid-February, the Mississauga Chinese Business Association reports that Chinese restaurants in the city have been 25-50% drops in revenue, attributable to misinformation.[79]

At least one business closed and sent employees home after an employee falsely claim of that a family member had tested positive for COVID-19. He was charged with public mischief.[80]

An employee at Maple Leaf Foods poultry plant in Brampton tested positive; employees who had contact with them were sent home for self-isolation.[81] The company waited 20 days before publicly acknowledging the diagnosis. The number sick grew to 24 by May 6, according to a Peel Public Health statement.[82] Operations at the facility were suspended in early April.[83]

On May 7, United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 175 confirmed the death of a Maple Lodge Farms plant's staff members.[84][85]

After a staff member was diagnosed with COVID-19, Mississauga meat producer Sofina Foods ended its overnight shift to allow for cleaning processes.[86]

The ECHL, the league of which the Brampton Beast are part, cancelled the remainder of its season on March 14, 2020.[87]

Three workers at Caledon's Amazon plant have tested positive for COVID-19, as of May 20, 2020.[88]

After gatherings of more than 5 people were banned, services at all places of worship were cancelled. Various congregations took to live streaming their services, from either the place of worship itself (as is the case with Mississauga's St. Maximilian Kolbe Catholic Church) or remotely. Brampton's Har Tikvah synagogue added other online programming, beyond its normal services. Ontario Khalsa Darbar closed its langar to pickup-only.[89]

As of April 29, the City of Brampton was allowing staff discretion around enforcement of noise by-laws, in relation to mosques broadcasting adhan (a call to prayer) during the month of Ramadan; it was waiting for a staff report on the topic. At the May 6 meeting, council approved a one-time by-law exemption.[90] Mayor Patrick Brown noted that church bells were exempted in the existing by-law.[91]

Mississauga council passed a motion at its April 29 council meeting, allowing mosques to do one adhan each day, which is normally banned by city noise by-law.[92][90] The item was a "walk on item" based on a request by the Muslim Council of Peel, meaning that it wasn't on the public agenda, nor was a staff report on the topic available.[90][93] Since then, two councillors have commented that Mayor Bonnie Crombie provided council with incorrect information on the subject, and that the matter should be revisited. Discussion on the topic has been referred to the city's Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Committee.[90]

The move and the criticism that followed received international headlines.[94] Ram Subrahmanian, a member of the group Keep Religion Out Of Peel Region Schools, has received donations for an intended court challenge.[95] A spokesperson for Muslim Canadian Congress commented that "many Islamic scholars who have denounced the use of loudspeakers in mosques as against the spirit of Islam."[95]

The decision allowed similar exemptions in communities including Windsor;[96] Toronto announced that it would do the same, if asked.[97]