Six more deaths, 116 new COVID-19 cases reported in Windsor-essex

The Windsor-essex County Health Unit reported the COVID-19 deaths of six more local residents on Wednesday.

Five of the people who succumbed to complications brought on by the disease lived in longterm care and retirement homes: a woman in her 70s, and three men and one woman in their 80s.

A man in his 70s who lived in the general community also died.

“I am so sorry to be reporting deaths this way, by gender, place of residence and age,” said health unit CEO Theresa Marentette. “We know their lives cannot be captured in a few words and our hearts do go out to their family and friends.”

Since March, 277 area residents have died as a result of the novel coronavirus. Sixty-seven per cent of them (186) were residents of long-term care and retirement homes.

An additional 116 cases of COVID-19 were also reported on Wednesday, bringing the total number of infections in the region up to 11,346. Roughly 20 per cent of those cases (2,419) are active and being monitored by public health unit staff.

There are 112 patients in local hospitals with COVID-19 and 18 of them are in intensive care.

Fifty-five locations across Windsor-essex have active outbreaks of the virus, including 27 workplaces, 19 long-term care and retirement homes, five units at hospitals, and two community locations.

No additional workplace outbreaks were declared on Wednesday.

An outbreak at Chateau Park, a long-term care home in Windsor where four staff members had tested positive, has been rescinded. The outbreak was declared on Dec. 28.

Infections at the remaining 19 homes with outbreaks held relatively steady, though some saw cases climb since Tuesday. At Augustine Villas in Kingsville, 11 additional residents and one staff member tested have tested positive for a total of 60 resident and 16 staff cases since Dec. 26. Three more residents and four more staff have contracted the disease at Regency Park in Windsor, bringing the infection count there up to six residents and five staff members since Jan. 14.

At Rosewood Erie Glen in Leamington, five more residents and one more staff member have tested positive for a total of 36 resident and six staff cases. That outbreak was declared on Dec. 31.

Another resident and three additional staff members have tested positive at the Village at St. Clair in Windsor, the hardest hit facility in Windsor-essex. An outbreak was declared there on Dec. 8, and 162 residents and 129 staff there have tested positive, though many of those cases are no longer active.

Community outbreaks at Assisted Living Southwestern Ontario on Sandwich Street and Longfellow Avenue are ongoing.

Windsor Regional Hospital is managing four outbreaks. Two are at the Ouellette campus (in the 6E and 4M units). At the Met campus, a new outbreak in the 6N unit was declared on Tuesday, adding to the outbreak in the 4N unit.

Hotel-dieu Grace Healthcare is also dealing with an outbreak at the 3N unit of its Emara facility.

The outbreak previously declared at the Windsor Police Service has been rescinded.