One new COVID-19-related death in Waterloo Region on Friday, 16 more cases
Health officials in Waterloo Region logged one COVID-19-related death and 16 more infections in Friday's report.
The latest death, the region's 282nd, was a woman in her 70s.
Of the 16 new cases, 14 are linked to the past 24 hours, while two are from previous reporting periods.
Friday's update brings Waterloo Region's total caseload to 18,257, including 17,823 resolved infections and 143 active cases.
Meanwhile, hospitalizations in the region dropped by eight in the past day. There are now 13 people hospitalized with COVID-19 across the region, with 13 people receiving treatment in area intensive care units.
One active outbreak was declared resolved in Friday's update, with 11 outbreaks still active.
Health officials have processed 537,724 COVID-19 tests since the pandemic began. As of Friday, the region's positivity rate sits at 2.6 per cent, while the reproductive rate of the virus is 0.8.
The seven-day rolling average cases per 100,000 is 3.2, down from 3.7 on Tuesday.
Health partners across the region put another 5,626 COVID-19 vaccine doses in arms on Thursday, bringing the total number of doses administered to 726,493.
More than 81.1 per cent of the eligible population has receive at least one dose, while 62.82 per cent of residents 12 and older are fully vaccinated.
Another three COVID-19 infections were confirmed as variant of concern cases in Friday's update, bringing the total number of variant cases to 4,579.
Waterloo Region's variant breakdown is as follows:
- 3,122 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
- 96 are the Gamma variant, initially discovered in Brazil and labelled as P.1
- 1,083 are the Delta variant, first found in India and previously called B.1.617
- 257 cases have had a mutation detected, but have not yet had a variant strain confirmed
Province-wide, 192 new COVID-19 cases and one death were confirmed in Friday's update.
Ontario’s rolling seven-day average now stands at 160, up from 151 at this point last week.
There have now been 538,271 lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases in Ontario.
With files from CTV Toronto.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Being harassed at work? What to consider when deciding what to do next
If you've been the victim of workplace harassment, it can be difficult to feel you're not alone - and even more difficult to know where to go with a complaint.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Half of Canadians support TikTok ban, with U.S. concerns 'trickling' north: poll
A new poll indicates 51 per cent of Canadians support banning the social media app TikTok, after a U.S. bill aiming to do just that passed in the House of Representatives.
Where is the worst place for allergy sufferers in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
More unauthorized products for skin, sexual enhancement, recalled: Here are the recalls of this week
Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency recalled various items this week, including torches, beef biltong and unauthorized products related to skin care and sexual enhancement.