TORONTO -- Public health officials in Ontario are set to release data today showing how many people could die of COVID-19 under a number of different scenarios.

Premier Doug Ford says the numbers may be hard to hear and should serve as a wake-up call for some Ontario residents.

But he says the public has the right to have access to the same information as him when making decisions about their health.

Ford describes the situation as extremely serious and is urging everyone to practise physical distancing as much as possible.

Medical experts will provide a briefing that includes the new data, but few details were immediately available.

Provincewide, there were nearly 2,800 cases of COVID-19 as of yesterday, including 53 deaths and 831 resolved.