Area posts 216 new COVID-19 cases and four more deaths

Four more Windsor-essex residents have succumbed to complications from COVID-19.

The local health unit on Thursday reported the deaths of a man in his 70s, a man and a woman in their 80s, and a woman in her 90s. All four of them lived in long-term care and retirement homes.

Since March, 241 area residents have lost their lives to COVID-19.

The Windsor-essex County Health Unit also reported 216 additional infections, bringing the total case count up to 10,494.

There are 2,802 active cases of COVID-19 in the region, with 111 people in hospital and 18 of them in ICU.

Resolved cases number 7,451, though some of those people may be experiencing lasting health effects brought on by the disease.

Forty-six locations across Windsor and Essex County have active COVID-19 outbreaks.

Of those, 20 are long-term care and retirement homes. An outbreak at Iler Lodge, a long-term care home in Essex where three staff members had tested positive since Dec. 31, has been rescinded.

More people at Banwell Gardens Care Centre in Windsor have tested positive, bringing the number of infected residents up to 111 and staff up to 52. That outbreak was declared on Dec. 16.

The community outbreak at Assisted Living Southwestern Ontario's Dougall Avenue location has been rescinded, leaving only the organization's Longfellow Avenue facility on that outbreak list.

Another school outbreak has been declared at Sandwich Secondary School.

Similar to the outbreak declared on Wednesday at Queen Victoria Public School, medical officer of health Dr. Wajid Ahmed said the epidemiological link between those involved was recently determined, but that the cases tested positive so long ago the outbreak is technically over.

Windsor Regional Hospital is dealing with two outbreaks at Ouellette campus (the 6 East and 4 Medical units) and one outbreak at Met campus (4 North unit).