24News.ca

TORONTO -- Half of all adults in Toronto will have received the first dose of their COVID-19 vaccine this weekend, marking an important milestone, officials say, in the fight against the deadly disease. The City of Toronto announced the update in a news release on Saturday, saying officials anticipate that first doses of the vaccines will be administered to at least 50 per cent of people over the age of 18 by the end of the weekend. Source

The NHL is relaxing virus protocols during the playoffs for teams that reach a threshold for vaccination. The league sent a memo to teams and players Friday night outlining changes that take hold once 85% or more of the travelling party has been fully vaccinated. Source

Multiple blasts targeted a school in the Afghan capital of Kabul on Saturday, killing at least 40 people and wounding dozens more, mostly students, a senior Interior Ministry official said. The official told Reuters on condition of anonymity that most of the casualties were students coming out of the Sayed ul Shuhada school. Source

MONTREAL -- Quebec reported Saturday that 958 more people have tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of infections since the start of the pandemic to 357,174. Of those, 337,538 people are reported to have recovered from the disease, an increase of 1,033. Source

An Ottawa family says they were shocked to receive an $880 fine days after letting their 14-year-old son use a nearby skateboarding park on his birthday. Merrick Batstone's family decided to celebrate his 14th birthday on May 3 by visiting Legacy Skatepark to enjoy some fresh air and exercise. Source

KABUL -- A bomb exploded near a girl's school in a majority Shiite district of west Kabul on Saturday, killing at least 25 people, many them young pupils between 11 and 15 years old, Afghan government spokesmen said. Source

KABUL -- A bomb exploded near a girls' school in a majority Shiite district of west Kabul on Saturday, killing at least 30 people, many of them young pupils between 11 and 15 years old. The Taliban condemned the attack and denied any responsibility. Source

TORONTO -- Ontario health officials are reporting fewer than 2,900 new cases of COVID-19 as the province’s positivity rate continues to dip. The province confirmed 2,864 new cases of the novel coronavirus on Saturday after officials reported infection totals above the 3,000 mark on Thursday and Friday. Source

Researchers in British Columbia say the pandemic has exposed weaknesses in how governments across Canada and around the world collect and use data to manage public health. B.C.'s Deputy Provincial Health Officer Dr. Reka Gustafson gave a talk Friday morning titled, "Where to go next: How the current pandemic has informed future public health research priorities. Source

A TikTok video has led to fresh leads in the case of Sofia Juarez, who was abducted one day before her fifth birthday in 2003 as she walked near her home, according to police in Kennewick, Washington state. Source