20 new COVID-19 cases reported in Waterloo Region
Health officials in Waterloo Region logged 20 new COVID-19 infections along with more than a dozen variant of concern cases.
The 20 latest cases bring the region's total case count to 18,719, including 18,291 resolved infections, 134 active cases and 288 deaths.
Among the new cases, four are people aged 10 to 19, and five are people in their 20s.
The number of infections confirmed as variant of concern cases rose by 13 in Thursday's update, up to 4,951.
The region's variant breakdown is as follows:
- 3,124 are the Alpha variant, first identified in the United Kingdom and originally known as B.1.1.7
- 21 are the Beta variant, originally detected in South Africa and previously referred to as B.1.315
- 98 are the Gamma variant, initially discovered in Brazil and labelled as P.1
- 1,440 are the Delta variant, first found in India and previously called B.1.617
- 268 cases have had a mutation detected, but have not yet had a variant strain confirmed
Hospitalizations rose by one in the past 24 hours, now up to 17. There are 10 people receiving treatment in area intensive care units.
Across Waterloo Region, there are four active COVID-19 outbreaks.
Another 1,792 COVID-19 vaccine doses were put into arms on Wednesday.
Since the vaccine rollout began, 805,385 doses have now been administered in Waterloo Region.
More than 84.5 per cent of residents 12 and older have now received at least one dose, while 76.59 per cent of the eligible population in the region are fully vaccinated.
Province-wide, 531 new COVID-19 cases were reported in Thursday's update.
Ontario's rolling seven-day average has ballooned to 498, a jump from 375 at the same time last week.
Health officials have now confirmed 557,451 COVID-19 cases and 9,448 deaths since the pandemic began.
With files from CTV Toronto.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
This type of screen time has the worst effect on kids: experts
According to some experts, there is one type of screen time that is continuously excessive, and it's having a severe effect on our children.
Grayson Murray's parents say the two-time PGA Tour winner died of suicide
Grayson Murray's parents said Sunday their 30-year-old son took his own life, just one day after he withdrew from a PGA Tour event. The family asked for privacy and that people honor Murray by being kind to one another.
Blaine Higgs 'furious' over sexual education presentation
New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs has shared his anger on social media over a presentation in at least four high schools.
Hamas rocket attack from Gaza sets off air raid sirens in Tel Aviv for the first time in months
Hamas fired a barrage of rockets from Gaza that set off air raid sirens as far away as Tel Aviv for the first time in months on Sunday in a show of resilience more than seven months into Israel's massive air, sea and ground offensive.
Some birds may use 'mental time travel,' study finds
Real quick — what did you have for lunch yesterday? Were you with anyone? Where were you? Can you picture the scene? The ability to remember things that happened to you in the past, especially to go back and recall little incidental details, is a hallmark of what psychologists call episodic memory — and new research indicates that it’s an ability humans may share with birds called Eurasian jays.
Trump confronts repeated boos during raucous Libertarian convention speech
Donald Trump was booed repeatedly while addressing Saturday night’s Libertarian Party National Convention.
'Inspires a sense of adventure': Sask. man conquers Mount Everest
A Saskatchewan man made it to the summit of Mount Everest earlier this month.
Indianapolis 500 delayed as strong storm forces fans to evacuate Indianapolis Motor Speedway
The start of the Indianapolis 500 was delayed as a strong storm pushed through the area Sunday, forcing Indianapolis Motor Speedway officials to evacuate about 125,000 fans who had already arrived for "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing."
Driver, 18, gets $3,000 ticket, 32 demerit points after speeding on Laval boulevard
A young driver received a hefty fine from Laval police after they say he was driving nearly 100 km/h over the posted speed limit.