Another 61 COVID-19 cases reported in Waterloo Region
Region of Waterloo Public Health is reporting 61 new cases of COVID-19, continuing a trend of rising infections officials say could put moving into step two of the province's reopening plan on hold.
The Saturday afternoon online dashboard update also shows 57 more cases now considered resolved and the active case count drop by one.
There have been no new related deaths reported in the past 24 hours.
Three more people have been hospitalized with the virus, with two more being treated in area ICUs.
Health officials have identified ten more cases as variants of concern, with three being the Alpha variant (B.1.1.7, first detected in the U.K.) and seven as the Delta (B.1.617, first detected in India).
On Friday, the public health unit confirmed that the Delta variant is now the dominant strain in Waterloo Region.
The number of active facility outbreaks in the area remains unchanged.
This brings the Waterloo Region COVID-19 totals to 16,975 confirmed cases, 16,170 resolved, 259 deaths, 527 active cases, 57 hospitalized, 20 in the ICU, nine active outbreaks, 3,527 variants of concern, 3,066 Alphas, 83 Deltas, 11 Beta variants (B.1.351, first detected in South Africa), and 60 Gamma variants (P.1., first detected in Brazil).
OVER 9,000 COVID-19 DEATHS IN ONTARIO
In Ontario, health officials logged 355 new cases of COVID-19 and 13 more deaths, bringing the province's death toll to 9,007.
The province, which records COVID-19 cases at a different rate of time than the local health officials, also reported that 54 cases were in Waterloo Region. Only Toronto had more cases in the past 24 hours at 58.
On Wednesday and Friday, Waterloo Region had the most cases in the province.
The seven-day average rate of cases per 100,000 people for Ontario currently sits at 2.3. Meanwhile, Waterloo Region's rate is 10.5.
VACCINATION EFFORTS RAMP UP
Speeding up second dose COVID-19 vaccinations in Waterloo Region was the focus of Friday's Public Health briefing.
The least vaccine numbers for the area show just over 73 per cent of adults having received their first shot, with 16 per cent fully vaccinated.
For Toronto, Saturday marked a milestone of 75 per cent of residents now having received their first dose and 25 per cent being fully vaccinated.
At Breslau Pharmacy and Wellness Centre, more second doses have been administered in the past few weeks, and more are expected in the coming weeks.
"I think we've got the first two, three weeks if not the next month fully booked," said pharmacist Khrystine Waked. "Pharmacists are obviously very available throughout the region, very conveniently located in many different neighbourhoods, so it's more of a conveience factor for patients to pop into their pharmacy and get their shots much quicker so we can be all protected."
Waterloo Region's vaccination task force has also added a pop-up clinic at Public Health headquarters in Waterloo for the weekend. The 400 appointments that were available were booked shortly after being opened.
The task force says they will be soon offer more mobile clinics, extended hours as the mass vaccination clinic, and a self appointment booking system expected to launch Monday to help people move up their second dose appointments.
With reporting from CTV Kitchener's Krista Simpson
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
Half of Canadians have negative opinion of latest Liberal budget: poll
A new poll suggests the Liberals have not won over voters with their latest budget, though there is broad support for their plan to build millions of homes.
opinion Why you should protect your investments by naming a trusted contact person
Appointing a trusted person to help with financial obligations can give you peace of mind. In his personal finance column for CTVNews.ca, Christopher Liew outlines the key benefits of naming a confidant to take over your financial responsibilities, if the need ever arises.
Teacher shortages see some Ontario high school students awarded perfect grades on midterm exams
Students at a high school in York Region have been awarded perfect marks on their midterm exams in three subjects – not because of their academic performances however, but because they had no teacher.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Doctors combine a pig kidney transplant and a heart device in a bid to extend woman's life
Doctors have transplanted a pig kidney into a New Jersey woman who was near death, part of a dramatic pair of surgeries that also stabilized her failing heart.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Ottawa injects another $36M into vaccine injury compensation fund
The federal government has added $36.4 million to a program designed to support people who have been seriously injured or killed by vaccines since the end of 2020.
An Ontario senior thought he called Geek Squad for help with his printer. Instead, he got scammed out of $25,000
An Ontario senior’s attempt to get technical help online led him into a spoofing scam where he lost $25,000. Now, he’s sharing his story to warn others.