KITCHEN –
The Waterloo region has reached a new COVID-19 milestone.
Public Health reported 270 new infections on Friday, beating the previous record of 232 set the day before.
Friday’s update includes 268 new cases reported in the last 24 hours, with the remaining two added to previous days.
The number of COVID-19 cases in the Waterloo region now stands at 23,043. Of those, 21,518 people are now considered recovered. The death toll remains unchanged at 312.
Active infections increased by 119 on Friday, now at 1,168.
While the number of new cases has increased, the same cannot be said for hospitalizations.
A total of 21 people are receiving treatment for COVID-19 at area hospitals, two more than was reported Thursday. Currently, six people are in the ICU.
Outbreaks were down from four to 17. The most recent outbreaks listed on the region dashboard are at Hillcrest Public School with a total of two cases, and four cases at Chartwell Elmira Long Term Care Residence.
Here is a breakdown of the variants of interest in the region:
- 3,126 have been identified as the Alpha variant (B.1.1.7)
- 21 have been identified as the Beta variant (B.1.351)
- 98 have been identified as the Gamma variant (P.1)
- 4,009 have been identified as the Delta variant (B.1.617)
- 44 have been identified as the Omicron variant (B.1.1.529)
ONTARIO COVID-19 UPDATE
The province is also reporting a record number of new infections.
Authorities say 9,571 new cases were added on Friday, beating yesterday’s record of 5,790.
Ontario’s seven-day moving average is now 4,922, up from 1,914 at this time last week.
MORE: Ontario Breaks Daily COVID-19 Record Again With Over 9,500 New Cases
Of the new infections reported on Friday, 2,146 involved unvaccinated, partially vaccinated people or their vaccination status is unknown. The remaining 7,425 cases correspond to people who have received two or more doses.
Reference-kitchener.ctvnews.ca