Area has 26 new COVID-19 cases

Health unit has reached more than 1,000 cases since start of pandemic

Peterborough Public Health documented 17 new cases of COVID-19 Saturday and nine Sunday.

The health unit, which covers the city and county, Hiawatha First Nation and Curve Lake First Nation, has confirmed 1,002 cases of the virus since March 2020. There are 104 active cases.

There have been 287 cases that involve a variant of concern. Twelve people have died from the virus locally.

Health workers have tested 47,600 people in the area at least once.

A new workplace outbreak was reported Friday, but the health unit does not identify the location of business outbreaks.

Outbreaks continue at Thomas A. Stewart Secondary School, Trent University’s Champlain College Annex on Water Street, Empress Gardens retirement home on Charlotte Street and three other unidentified workplaces.

Trent University reported having six active cases on Friday, all students in residence.

Neighbouring areas

The Durham Region Health Department reported 240 new COVID-19 cases Saturday and 384 Sunday. There are 1,977 active cases in Durham.

The Haliburton Kawartha Pine Ridge health unit, which covers the City of Kawartha Lakes, Northumberland County and the Haliburton area, issued a notice Saturday advising people who ate at a Cobourg restaurant between March 25 and April 5 to check for COVID-19 symptoms and get tested.

An outbreak was declared at the Strathy Road Swiss Chalet restaurant on April 7, with six cases associated with the outbreak.

The advice applies to people who ate inside the restaurant, not people who picked up takeout orders.

HKPR reported 15 cases in Northumberland County, six in the City of Kawartha Lakes and

none in Haliburton on Saturday.

The health unit has tested 167,405 people and has confirmed 1,310 COVID-19 cases.

Basketball court

The city has closed a downtown basketball court, citing concerns from city police.

The court at Bethune Park, at Simcoe Street, has been attracting crowds that exceed the provincial limits under the provincial shutdown and stay-athome order, city spokesperson Brendan Wedley wrote in a release issued to media Saturday evening.

“Signs have been posted at the basketball courts at Simcoe and Bethune Park indicating that they are closed. Use of the basketball courts is not permitted during the closure,” the release stated.

“The provincial public health regulations during the shutdown restrict outdoor social gatherings to a maximum of five people while maintaining physical distancing of at least two metres.

Outdoor exercise is permitted, but team sports or games that see people coming within two metres of each other are not permitted.