File photo courtesy of © Can Stock Photo Inc. / vetdoctor)File photo courtesy of © Can Stock Photo Inc. / vetdoctor)
Sarnia

Ontario announces timeline for vaccinating seniors

The Ontario government is finalizing plans for a province wide registration system for vaccine distribution.

Chair of Ontario's COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Task Force retired General Rick Hillier announced the system is set to go live on March 15 when the province expects the start vaccinating seniors over the age of 80.

The system will include online registration as well as a call centre for those who do not have access to the internet.

The province has set out a timeline for seniors in the province.

- April 15 registration will open for 75+ - May 1 registration will open for 70+ - June 1 registration will open for 65+ - July 1 registration will open for 60+

This timeline is dependent on vaccine supply. The government is asking residents not to contact the call centre unless you are in the age group specified.

"If more vaccines come to Ontario we will be able to move all of those age brackets forward and including being able to pull the essential workers forward also," said General Hillier.

If the supply is available, the province intends to start vaccinating essential workers in the first week of May along with the senior populations.

Many health units have already launched or are in the process of launching local systems to get residents registered for vaccinations.

The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit has indicated they will be announcing plans to start registering the 80+ population on Thursday.

The Chatham Kent Public Health Unit opened its first mass vaccination clinic this week. Organizers announced they would be vaccinating seniors 80+ beginning in March.

The Middlesex London Health Unit has not yet announced a registration system. However, it has opened two vaccination clinics with plans to open two more.

The federal government has said on multiple occasions all residents in Canada who want a vaccine will have one available to them by September. General Hillier confirmed this will be possible as long as the vaccine supply remains steady.

Read More Local Stories

New military crosswalk rendering. (Image courtesy of the Sarnia Legion Branch 62)

New military crosswalk in Sarnia to be unveiled

As part of a partnership between the Sarnia Legion Branch 62 and City of Sarnia, an unveiling ceremony will be held at the corner of Christina Street and Wellington Street on Sunday, June 7, at 2 p.m.

Members of the Sarnia Police Service entering a Tashmoo Avenue residence on June 4, 2026. (Photo courtesy of the Sarnia Police Service)

Two men arrested in Tashmoo Ave. standoff

Sarnia police said the investigation began on May 29 after the victim was allegedly attacked by acquaintances at a residence near Tashmoo Avenue and Christopher Drive at Aamjiwnaang First Nation.