Record 250 cases of COVID diagnosed
The Windsor- Essex County Health Unit reported its highest single-day increase in COVID-19 infections on Wednesday, as three new local deaths were attributed to the highly contagious virus.
A man in his 40s and a woman in her 70s who lived in the community and a woman in her 90s who lived in long-term care were the latest deaths attributed to the novel coronavirus.
Since March, 105 residents of Windsor and Essex County have succumbed to complications brought on by COVID-19.
The 250 new cases announced on Wednesday are an “unfortunate” but expected high number, said medical officer of health Dr. Wajid Ahmed.
“We can anticipate — at least for a week — that the numbers will be similar, or maybe they will show some sign of going down,” he said. “Next week is very critical for us.”
Health unit CEO Theresa Marentette said WEHCU'S epidemiologists had recently projected a continued increase in cases. The region surpassed 6,000 infections on Tuesday, only six days after it hit the 5,000-case mark.
Six of the new cases are being attributed to community spread, 13 are close contacts of confirmed cases, and 32 are related to outbreaks. The transmission sources for the remaining 199 cases are still under investigation by public health unit staff.
There are currently 1,305 active cases of COVID-19 in Windsor-essex.
If residents fail to follow provincial rules prohibiting social gatherings over the holidays, Ahmed said he is “absolutely” anticipating an even higher jump in new infections.
“I don't know what other measures that I can put forward, or the province can put forward, to contain it — all of these measures are completely and entirely dependent on everyone's behaviour.
“Every day, reporting two or three deaths is not a good sign for our community. We have to remember, we all have our loved ones who could be vulnerable, who could die if they contract COVID.”
Public health and provincial regulations prohibit any indoor social gatherings with people from different households, with an exception for those who live alone. Only those people may join one other household.
In local hospitals, 76 patients have confirmed cases, with 16 of them in intensive care. An additional 129 patients have suspected cases of COVID-19 and are awaiting their test results.
There are 35 locations across the region with active COVID-19 outbreaks.
Fourteen are long-term care and retirement homes. In Windsor, there are outbreaks at Sunrise Assisted Living of Windsor, Huron Lodge, Banwell Gardens Care Centre, The Shoreview at Riverside, Berkshire Care Centre, The Village at St. Clair, and Village of Aspen Lake. In Tecumseh, there are outbreaks at Chartwell St. Clair Beach and Extendicare Tecumseh.
There are also outbreaks at Country Village in Woodslee, Richmond Terrace in Amherstburg, Chartwell Classic Oak Park Lasalle, Sun Parlour Home in Leamington, and La Chaumiere Retirement in Lakeshore.
Eight farms in Leamington and Kingsville have outbreaks, as do two health-care and social assistance businesses in Windsor and Essex and two manufacturing facilities in Tecumseh.
Three school outbreaks are active, including one declared on Wednesday at Immaculate Conception Catholic School, where at least two members of a single class cohort have tested positive.
Outbreaks at St. Mary French Immersion Catholic Elementary School and L. A. Desmarais Catholic Elementary School are also active.
There are also outbreaks at three community locations: Assisted Living Southwestern Ontario, Manor Lodge House, and Victoria Manor.
Windsor Regional Hospital is dealing with two outbreaks at its Met campus, one on the sixth-floor North Unit (6N) and another on the fourth-floor North Unit (4N). Hotel-dieu Grace Healthcare continues to manage an outbreak at its Prince Road facility.