Canada authorities had expected coronavirus spike, fret about young victims

But everyone recognizes we would expect to get clusters of cases," Njoo said. Officials in a number of major cities attribute the spike in part to groups of young people gathering in bars and nightclubs and at parties.

Canada's recent increase in coronavirus cases was expected as the economy reopens, a senior medical official said on Tuesday, while expressing concern about how many young people were contracting the virus. Howard Njoo, Canada's deputy chief public health officer, told a briefing that the success of efforts to combat the outbreak was fragile and could be undermined by people becoming complacent.

The daily case count across Canada is now around 460 compared with 300 earlier in the month. Authorities in the 10 provinces are gradually lifting social and economic restrictions imposed in March. "Provinces (are) ... trying to reopen at I think a very prudent pace, slowly opening up bars and restaurant. But everyone recognizes we would expect to get clusters of cases," Njoo said.

Officials in a number of major cities attribute the spike in part to groups of young people gathering in bars and nightclubs and at parties. Njoo said young adults now made up around 55% of new cases, compared with around a third in May.

"That is concerning," he said, blaming fatigue after months of lockdown and a feeling among the young that they were invincible "and can get away with anything." The premier of Ontario, the most populous Canadian province, said he was concerned by an uptick in cases coming from those under 39, blaming the spike on a small number of young people "going hog wild".

Doug Ford told a news conference: "Just don't go to a party, simple ... you're hurting people by doing this." Canada has recorded 111,124 cases and 8,858 deaths, far fewer per capita than in the United States, where several states are recording daily records.

"All of us in Canada ... are looking very carefully and I think with some alarm at what's happening in the United States," said Njoo. (Additional reporting by Moira Warburton in Toronto; Editing by Steve Orlofsky and Tom Brown)

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