KITCHENER -- Public health officials have reported another 77 new cases of COVID-19 in Waterloo Region, alongside three new workplace and business outbreaks.
The latest epi-curve on the region's online dashboard shows 66 new cases of COVID-19, but the total number of cases rose from 3,586 to 3,663 on Tuesday. There can be a disconnect in instances where public health officials add new cases to previous dates.
The total number of cases in the region includes 2,976 resolved cases—a number that increased by 70 from the day before—and 125 deaths.
That leaves 561 active cases in the region, which is another all-time high. The number has been steadily rising through the month of November; a month ago, there were just 116 active cases in the region.
Of the active cases, 27 people are in hospital, including nine people who are being cared for in the intensive care unit. To date, 312 people in Waterloo Region have been hospitalized with the disease at some point, including 78 people who required care in the ICU.
The latest outbreaks were declared at an ice-skating class, an industrial equipment sales/service business and a food and beverage service. In each case, three COVID-19 cases have been linked to the business, prompting the outbreaks.
Public health officials do not typically name the businesses where outbreaks are declared unless they have to for public safety.
There are now 25 active outbreaks in the region, including two at long-term care and retirement homes, four at schools and two at hospitals. There are also outbreaks at a child-care centre, a congregate setting and an independent living facility.
The rest of the active outbreaks are in workplaces, businesses and facilities.
The positivity rate's seven-day moving average remained at four per cent on Wednesday, while the median reproduction estimate remained at 1.2. That number represents the number of cases expected to be generated from one case in the population.
ONTARIO NUMBERS STEADY AS TESTING DIPS
The province as a whole reported 1,707 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, but testing numbers fell short of the province's goal of 50,000 per day.
After doing just 34,640 tests in the day before, the province's positivity rate rose to 5.1 per cent. That's the highest that number has reached in more than a week.
There have now been a total of 118,199 COVID-19 cases across Ontario since the pandemic began. Another 1,373 people recovered from COVID-19, pushing the total number of resolved cases to 100,012.
To date, 3,663 people have died from the disease.
