COVID-19: MLHU reports 42 cases, death of woman in her 80s | Globalnews.ca

Jump to: Hospitalizations – Outbreaks – Schools – Vaccinations and testing – Ontario – Elgin and Oxford – Huron and Perth – Sarnia and Lambton

The Middlesex-London Health Unit (MLHU) reported 42 new COVID-19 cases Friday, with a total case count of 15,241.

There are 338 active cases (an increase of 27), 14,648 recoveries (an increase of 13) and 255 deaths (an increase of one).

The death involves a woman in her 80s not associated with a long-term care or retirement home. She was fully vaccinated.

As of Thursday, the local Omicron cluster involved at least 50 people and 18 households. It was tied to seven schools, two child-care centres and a church.

Acting Medical Officer of Health Dr. Alex Summers said Thursday that the health unit is also investigating possible Omicron cases outside of the cluster, including at least one person who screened positive but has no association with travel.

Thursday morning, the MLHU, in partnership with Southwestern Public Health and Huron Perth Public Health, issued recommendations for the holiday season, urging residents to keep indoor holiday gatherings small, get vaccinated and work remotely, where possible.

The rate of active cases continues to climb dramatically among those in the under-12 age group.

For children 11 and under, there were 94 cases or 145.9 per 100,000 population on Friday, Dec. 10, up from 33 cases last Friday.

The cohort with the next highest rate of active cases is the 18-24 age group, with 55 active cases or 104.2 per 100,000 population as of Friday.

Information on local variants of concern can be found by visiting the health unit’s summary of COVID-19 cases on the Middlesex-London page and clicking on the “Case Status” tab.

Hospitalizations

As of Friday, London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) was caring for 12 inpatients with COVID-19, with five or fewer in adult critical care or the intensive care unit.

There were five or fewer inpatients with COVID-19 in LHSC’s Children’s Hospital, with five or fewer in pediatric critical care.

Eight staff members had tested positive for COVID-19.

St. Joseph’s Health Care London is reporting one case involving a health-care worker.

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Outbreaks

The MLHU is not reporting any outbreaks at long-term care homes, retirement homes or hospitals but there are several outbreaks involving schools:

• Byron Northview Public School, declared Dec. 9
• Mountsfield Public School, declared Dec. 7
• Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School, declared Dec. 6
• Princess Elizabeth Public School, declared Dec. 9
• Riverside Public School, declared Dec. 6
• St. Andre Bessette Secondary School, declared Dec. 9
• St. Jude Catholic School, declared Dec. 7
• St. Marguerite d’Youville School, declared Dec. 3
• St. Mary Choir and Orchestra Catholic School, declared Dec. 5
• St. Nicholas Catholic School, declared Dec. 8
• Tecumseh Public School, declared Dec. 3
• West Oaks French Immersion Public School, declared Dec. 4

There is also an outbreak, declared Dec. 6, at Kidzone Day Care Centre.

An outbreak at Fanshawe College’s Merlin House residence, declared Nov. 28, and at Western University’s Saugeen-Maitland Hall residence, declared Nov. 27, are ongoing. As of Thursday, the outbreak at Saugeen was tied to 17 cases while the outbreak at Merlin House was tied to five cases.

The MLHU also announced Monday there is an outbreak at God’s Favourite House, a church on Dearness Drive, connected to the Omicron cluster.

Schools

The following schools have active cases associated with them, according to the MLHU:

• Blessed Sacrament Catholic School (one case)
• Byron Northview Public School (four cases)
• Caradoc Public School (one case)
• Cedar Hollow Public School (one case)
• Covenant Christian School (one case)
• Delaware Central School (two cases)
• École élémentaire catholique Saint-Jean-de-Brébeuf (one case)
• Franklin D. Roosevelt Public School (three cases)
• London Christian Academy (one case)
• London Christian High (one case)
• Lord Dorchester Secondary School (one case)
• Matthews Hall (one case)
• Mountsfield Public School (one case)
• Northdale Central Public School (one case)
• Northridge Public School (one case)
• Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School (four cases)
• Princess Elizabeth Public School (two cases)
  
• Riverside Public School (one case)
• Sir Arthur Currie Public School (one case)
• St. Andre Bessette Secondary School (four cases)
• St. Anthony Catholic French Immersion School (one case)
• St. Jude Catholic School (three cases)
• St. Marguerite d’Youville School (four cases)
• St. Nicholas Catholic School (six cases)
• St. Paul Catholic School (one case)
• Stoneybrook Public School (one case)
• Strathroy Community Christian School (two cases)
• Tecumseh Public School (two cases)
• West Oaks French Immersion Public School (six cases)

The MLHU is reporting cases at several child-care and early-years centres in its jurisdiction:

• F. D. Roosevelt YMCA School Age in London, one case
• Kidzone Day Care Centre in London, two cases (outbreak declared Dec. 6)
• London Children’s Connection – Mountsfield Before and After School, one case
• St. Theresa YMCA Child Care, one case
• Tiny Hoppers Early Learning Centre – Summerside, one case
• Wortley YMCA Child Care Centre, one case

The health unit says at least 358 cases have been reported since the start of the school year involving elementary and secondary schools, as well as child-care and early-years centres.

Vaccinations and testing

The MLHU provided updated vaccination data, covering up to the end of the day, on Dec. 4.

According to the MLHU, 90.5 per cent of residents aged 12 and older have had at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine as of Dec. 4 while 87.9 per cent are fully vaccinated.

Among the entire population aged five and over, 85.1 per cent of the population has had at least one dose while 81.1 per cent are fully vaccinated.

Vaccinations for those aged five to 11 began Nov. 26 in London and in just over a week, 23.5 per cent of that cohort have had their first dose.

As for the vaccination status of cases, the MLHU says unvaccinated individuals have accounted for 39.86  per cent of all cases (291 of 730) and 35.0 per cent of hospitalizations (seven of 20) since Oct. 28.

Of the 10 COVID-19-related deaths reported in the last six weeks, five individuals were unvaccinated. One involved someone partially vaccinated and four involved someone who was fully vaccinated.

On the health unit’s website, residents can find information on pop-up clinics, mass vaccination clinics and pharmacies; guidance for anyone vaccinated outside of the province or country; transportation support for those in need; and more.

Anyone looking to be tested for COVID-19 can find information about the locations of testing sites on the health unit’s website.

The latest COVID-19 test positivity rate in the region was 3.1 per cent for the week of Nov. 28, up from 2.1 per cent for the week of Nov. 21.

Ontario

Ontario is reporting 1,453 new COVID cases on Friday, the highest daily count since the end of May.

Of the 1,453 new cases recorded, the data showed 613 were unvaccinated people, 26 were partially vaccinated people, 718 were fully vaccinated people and for 96 people the vaccination status was unknown.

According to Friday’s report, 195 cases were recorded in Toronto, 109 in Ottawa, 95 in the Kingston area, 91 in York Region, 89 each in Windsor-Essex and Peel Region, 73 in Simcoe Muskoka, and 68 in Halton. All other local public health units reported fewer than 65 new cases.

The death toll in the province has risen to 10,064 as 11 more deaths were reported.

Elgin and Oxford

On Friday, Southwestern Public Health reported:

• 5,632 total cases (an increase of 23 cases)
• 201 active cases (an increase of two)
• 5,326 resolved cases (an increase of 21)
• 105 deaths to date (unchanged)

SWPH did not report any deaths Thursday or Friday, but reported two deaths on Wednesday, two on Tuesday and one on Monday.

Wednesday’s deaths involved a man in his 50s from St. Thomas and a man in his 70s from Oxford County. Tuesday’s deaths involved a woman in her 50s and a man in his 60s, both from Elgin County. The death reported Monday involved a man in his 70s.

Further details can be found on SWPH’s COVID-19 dashboard.

Of the 201 active cases in the region, 100 were in Elgin County (including 57 in St. Thomas and 28 in Aylmer) and 101 were in Oxford County (including 38 in Woodstock and 34 in Tillsonburg).

Ten people were hospitalized with COVID-19, with five in the ICU as of Friday.

An outbreak at Caressant Care Bonnie Place in St. Thomas declared Nov. 28 is ongoing. It involves eight resident cases and eight staff cases.

Information on school cases can be found on the websites of the Thames Valley District School Board and the London District Catholic School Board.

The region’s test positivity rate was 5.3 per cent for the week of Nov. 28, down from 5.9 per cent for the week of Nov. 21.

As of Dec. 9, 75.6 per cent of those aged five and older in the region were fully vaccinated while 79.7 per cent have had at least one dose.

Information on where and how to get vaccinated can be found on the health unit’s website.

Huron and Perth

Huron Perth Public Health said Friday there is a case under investigation for the Omicron variant in Huron Perth and the case is linked to community exposures in two locations in Huron County on Saturday, Dec. 4.

HPPH said it was reaching out to everyone identified as a high-risk contact. The investigation is also tied to the Pink at the Rink tournament.

On Friday, Huron Perth Public Health reported:

• 2,661 total cases (an increase of 11)
• 82 active cases (an increase of eight)
• 2,509 recoveries (an increase of three)
• 70 deaths to date (unchanged)

The most recent death was reported Nov. 29 and involved a community member connected to a workplace outbreak, according to a spokesperson for the health unit.

Among the 82 active cases, 25 were in North Perth and 13 in Perth East. Full case counts by the municipality can be found on the health unit’s dashboard.

There were three people hospitalized with COVID-19 and one active case involving a health-care worker as of Friday.

HPPH has seven active outbreaks involving five schools and two workplaces:

• Perth Care for Kids in West Perth, declared Dec. 6, involves two students.
• North Perth Westfield ES in North Perth, declared Nov. 30, involves 11 students and one staff case.
• North Perth Westfield Before and After Program, declared Nov. 29, involves two students.
• Elma Township Public School in North Perth, declared Nov. 23, involves 26 students.
• Milverton Public School in Perth East, declared Dec. 9, involves two students.

No further information was provided about the workplace outbreaks.

An outbreak at North Perth Spinrite Child and Family Centre in North Perth, declared Nov. 22 and involving two child cases, is now over.

Data on school cases can be found on the websites of the Avon-Maitland District School Board and the Huron-Perth Catholic District School Board.

As of Dec. 6, 81 per cent of residents aged five and older have had at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose while 77 per cent are fully vaccinated.

The region’s test positivity rate was 2.9 per cent for the week of Nov. 28, down from 3.6 per cent for the week of Nov. 21.

Information on how and where to get a vaccine can be found on the health unit’s website.

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Sarnia and Lambton

On Friday, Lambton Public Health (LPH) reported:

• 4,468 total cases (an increase of eight)
• 63 active cases (an increase of three)
• 4,327 resolved cases (an increase of five)
• 78 deaths (unchanged)

The most recent death was reported Friday, Dec. 3.

As of Friday, there were five COVID-19 patients in the care of Bluewater Health.

LPH is reporting four active outbreaks:

• An outbreak at St. Anne Catholic School declared Dec. 3 and involving seven cases.
• An outbreak at St. Bartholomew’s Early Childhood Learning Centre was declared Dec. 3 and involved five cases.
• An outbreak at Generations Day Care – St. Philip Site, declared Nov. 28 and involved fewer than five cases.
• An outbreak at an unidentified workplace was declared Dec. 6, involving two cases.

A previous outbreak at an unidentified workplace, declared Nov. 28 and involving two cases, was listed as over as of Dec. 9.

All active cases at schools within the Lambton Kent District School Board can be found online, as can cases at schools within the St. Clair Catholic District School Board.

The test positivity rate for the week of Nov. 28 was 3.9 per cent, up from 2.8 per cent the week before.

Among area residents aged five and older, 79 per cent have had at least one dose while 75 per cent have had two doses. Seven per cent have had a third dose.

Residents can book and re-book COVID-19 vaccine appointments or find information on vaccine availability at pharmacies using the health unit’s registration page. People can also contact the vaccine call centre at 226-254-8222.

Those who are able to get vaccinated on short notice are encouraged to sign up for Lambton Public Health’s daily Vaccine Standby List.

— with files from Global News’ Matthew Trevithick and Gabby Rodrigues