A man in his 70s who died of complications related to COVID-19 is the region's 70th fatality.
The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit reported the man's death Tuesday morning during its daily briefing with the media.
Medical Officer of Health Doctor Wajid Ahmed said the man was admitted to the hospital in mid-July and transferred to the Intensive Care Unit soon after with signs of respiratory distress.
Ahmed said the man had other pre-existing health conditions and was infected in the community.
The last death in the region was on July 15. A woman in her 70s also died of complications related to the virus.
The health unit also reported 24 new cases of COVID-19 during the briefing. Of those, 11 are workers in the agri-food sector, nine are community cases, and four others are under investigation.
There are currently 678 people self-isolating in Windsor-Essex, and 11 people are in the hospital.
Of the 2,245 cases reported since March, 1,434 are resolved.
Ahmed also said the health unit is aggressively tracing contacts of those infected and usually notifies contacts within 24 hours, although some with 48 hours.
The health unit is getting help from the province and other health units to conduct contact tracing, case management, and case follow up. CEO Theresa Marentette said agencies in Chatham-Kent, Sarnia-Lambton, Middlesex-London, Haldimand-Norfolk, and Grey-Bruce assisted local public health officials.
