More than $200,000 worth of surgical masks have been recalled by the City of Toronto from long-term care homes after reports of the masks "ripping and tearing." 

Amidst serious PPE shortages citywide, the City recalled 62,600 masks yesterday after finding they failed to meet quality standards.  

Four thousand boxes (equating to 137,400 masks) recently came in to the city. Of those boxes, 1,252 were distributed to employees working in long-term care homes across the city. 

According to the City, "the masks are being returned, and the vendor has committed to a full refund." There has been no comment regarding who the vendor was that the City purchased from, or where the masks were manufactured. 

#CityofTO recalling poor quality surgical masks distributed to staff. News release: https://t.co/P1M8ORc1uy pic.twitter.com/E77neIVo6O

— City of Toronto (@cityoftoronto) April 7, 2020

Toronto's occupational health safety staff are now looking into how many long-term care workers were wearing the faulty masks while caring for patients, and possible exposure to COVID-19.

The City has not made a statement regarding which long-term care facilities were put at risk, or how many. 

"The City has also undertaken a quality control review of its supply chain, and all future orders of personal protective equipment will be subject to heightened verification to ensure the products it receives meet the specifications ordered," said the City statement.

In the meantime, Toronto will be falling back on its stockpile of surgical masks until they can get a new delivery that meets health standards. They are now calling on the province to help expedite the order. 

"The loss of this inventory makes for a significant shortfall of surgical masks for the City," they wrote.