Waterloo Region Reports Record Number of New COVID-19 Cases

The Waterloo region reported a record number of new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, adding 232 more.

The previous record was 180 cases on January 6.

Of the new cases, 227 were reported in the last 24 hours, while the rest were added to the totals from previous days.

Thursday’s update brings the number of COVID-19 cases in the Waterloo region to 22,775 to date, including 21,319 recoveries and 312 deaths.

Active infections rose 102 on Thursday, now 1,049. Active cases topped 1,000 on January 15.

There are 19 people receiving treatment for COVID-19 at area hospitals, including six in the ICU.

There are 21 active outbreaks in the Waterloo region.

The breakdown of the variants of interest is as follows:

  • 3,126 are the Alpha variant
  • 21 are the Beta variant
  • 98 are the Gamma variant
  • 4009 are the Delta variant
  • 44 are the Omicron variant
  • A mutation has been detected in 262 cases, but a variant strain has not yet been confirmed.

To date, a total of 1,023,207 doses of vaccine have been administered in the Waterloo region. Of the eligible population five years and older, 85.49% have received one dose, while 79.96% have received two doses.

Regarding the entire population, 80.95% have one dose and 75.78% two doses.

The region has also administered 96,327 booster vaccines to date.

HEALTH OFFICIALS RESPOND TO THE RISE OF COVID-19

Local health officials worry that the worst is yet to come.

“The numbers are going to be very high, very soon,” Lee Fairclough, president of St. Mary’s General Hospital, told CTV News.

The region opened nearly 11,900 booster appointments next week in a bid to slow the spread of the virus.

“The amount of vaccines that has been given over the course of the last week is really where we need it to be,” Fairclough said.

Local experts expect the number of cases to be even higher than the region’s records. That, they say, is due to two factors: increased demand for COVID-19 testing that is causing delays, and some people are not getting tested.

“Especially if you don’t have symptoms, you may not come out for a test,” said Zahid Butt, an infectious disease expert at the University of Waterloo.

Local health officials said they are working to improve the availability of the tests.

“Particularly those who work in hospitals so we can make sure we can keep our workforce,” Fairclough said.

Some experts call for another lockdown.

“Really, if we want to control the virus, we may have to initiate stricter restrictions than we have now,” Butt said. “Why do we want to do that? One is because he wants to restrict the movement of people in the community. “

“I think this speaks to how quickly Omicron can spread and the potential for this wave to have a significant impact,” said Dr. Matthew Tenenbaum, Associate Medical Health Officer at Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health. “People should take this seriously and follow recommended public health measures.”

THE PROVINCE ALSO SETS A COVID-19 RECORD

Ontario also set a record for new cases Thursday, reporting 5,790 more. The province’s seven-day moving average now stands at 4.001. Last week it was 1,674.

The province’s positivity rate is 16%, the highest rate in history.

Of the new infections reported Thursday, 1,398 cases involved unvaccinated, partially vaccinated people, or their vaccination status is unknown. The remaining 4,392 infections affected people who were fully vaccinated.

To date, Ontario has reported 667,353 COVID-19 cases, including 624,801 recoveries and 10,140 deaths.

With CTV Toronto files

Reference-kitchener.ctvnews.ca

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