65 new cases of COVID-19 sets record for second wave
The Windsor- Essex County Health Unit reported 65 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, the region's highest single-day infection count since the second wave hit.
Of the new cases, five are close contacts of people who previously tested positive and two cases are attributed to community spread.
The transmission source for the remaining 58 cases remains under investigation by public health unit staff. Once those positive cases are interviewed and their exposure sources are determined, the information will be updated on the health unit's website (wechu.org.)
Since March, 3,864 residents of Windsor and Essex County have tested positive for COVID-19. Of those, 424 cases are active and being monitored by the health unit.
There are 27 members of the local community in hospital with COVID-19 and seven of them are in intensive care.
No additional deaths were reported on Friday.
The region currently is experiencing 21 active outbreaks.
Chartwell St. Clair Beach, a retirement home in Tecumseh, was added to the outbreak list on Thursday after a resident tested positive. The health unit also continues to monitor outbreaks at five long-term care homes: Village of Aspen Lake on Mchugh Street, Chartwell Royal Oak Residence in Kingsville, Leamington Mennonite in Leamington, Riverside Place in Windsor, and Iler Lodge in Essex.
A community outbreak at Riverplace Residence on Detroit Street has been rescinded, but the outbreak at Victoria Manor downtown remains active.
New workplace outbreaks have been declared at a manufacturing facility in Kingsville and a health care and social assistance business in Windsor. They join the list of seven other workplace outbreaks: a manufacturing facility in Windsor, a health care and social assistance business in Lakeshore, three farms, a place of worship, and a finance and insurance business in Leamington.
Two hospitals in the region are managing active outbreaks. One is on the third floor of Hotel-dieu Grace Healthcare's rehabilitation unit on Prince Road, and the other is on the seventh floor of Windsor Regional Hospital's Ouellette Campus.
Seven students from one classroom at Corpus Christi Catholic Middle School's Central Park Athletics Campus have tested positive. That class has been dismissed to self-isolate, but in-class learning continues for the rest of the school population.
The health unit is working with the Greater-essex County District School Board on plans to resume in-school learning at F. W. Begley Public School, where 40 students and nine staff members tested positive. That outbreak was declared on Nov. 17, more than two weeks ago, and the entire school population was dismissed. While roughly 25 per cent of those cases are still active, health unit officials said they expect some members of the school community will be able to return to in-class learning next week.