Canada: Delta virus variant warnings

CBC News: The National in Canada shows the important stories in Canada.

August 19, 2021 - The delta variant’s dominance prompts warnings from experts who say vaccination makes all the differences. Afghans in Canada ramp up efforts to help those stranded. Plus, At Issue breaks down the early days of the campaign and the role of the pandemic.

Correction: At 3:10 in this broadcast, Dr. Mike Nayak is incorrectly identified as Mark Nayak. 

In the video:

0:00 The National for Aug. 19, 2021

1:40 Vaccination key to avoiding the worst from delta variant, experts say

4:28 Growing COVID-19 outbreak in N.W.T

5:00 Ontario MPP kicked out of caucus for not being vaccinated 

5:30 Toronto makes vaccines mandatory for city employees

6:10 Big campaign promises to improve affordability

8:13 Liberals promise $9 billion to long-term care sector

9:01 Community groups call for more action on gun violence in Montreal

10:50 Canada may be unable to get every eligible Afghan out of the country 

11:28 Frustration, defiance inside Afghanistan

13:26 National youth soccer player fell to his death at Kabul airport 

13:43 Afghan Paralympian pleas for help getting to Paralympics 

14:17 Afghanistan’s Hazara minority fear renewed massacres under Taliban

16:35 Landslides hamper relief efforts in rural Haiti after earthquake

20:37 Ontario PCs apologize for fundraising letters that looked like invoices 

21:00 Swedish company claims first production of green steel

21:37 Ranchers struggle to get livestock to safety when fleeing B.C. wildfires

24:43 The early winners, losers on the campaign trail | At Issue

38:50 "Miracle" recovery from COVID-19 blood clot 

40:20 Controversy surrounds new Jeopardy! host

43:01 The Moment

The so-called Delta variant has mutations in the gene encoding the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein causing the substitutions D614G, T478K, P681R and L452R. It is identified as the 21A clade under the Nextstrain phylogenetic classification system.

At the end of May 2021, the WHO assigned the label Delta to lineage B.1.617.2 after introducing a new policy of using Greek letters for variants of concern and variants of interest.