KITCHENER -- A Kitchener elementary school that has an active COVID-19 outbreak has reported three more cases, but the latest cases are not connected to the outbreak itself.

A spokesperson for the Waterloo Catholic District School Board said that the three cases reported at St. Bernadette CES on Sunday were not related to the that outbreak.

Two cases reported last week were linked to one other, which is what prompted the outbreak in the first place.

"The three cases that popped up on the weekend are not part of that," said John Shewchuk.

There have now been a total of six cases at the school: four in students and two in staff members. The Catholic school board has reported at least 30 cases of COVID-19 through the month of December.

Shewchuk noted that the vast majority of cases in WCDSB schools do not start at the school.

The local teachers union said finding supply teachers can be difficult when there are so many COVID-19 cases at a school.

"Occasional teachers look at the list and say 'St. Bernadettes, I don't know if I want to go there today,'" said Patrick Etmanski, president of the Ontario English Catholic Teachers Association Waterloo Unit.

The school board also said having two different school systems, one in class and one virtual, also adds to the stress of having enough staff to cover classes.

You can track every case of COVID-19 in the region's publicly funded school boards using our online COVID-19 tracker.