The number of COVID-19 related deaths in the London region went up by four on Monday as daily cases of the virus hit the second highest level seen since the pandemic began.
The Middlesex London Health Unit reported the latest deaths involve a man and woman in their 80s who resided in long-term care. Two other men, one in his 60s and another in his 80s, also succumbed to the virus. Neither of those two men were connected to a long-term care or retirement facility.
The death toll in London and Middlesex County now stands at 91.
There were 71 COVID-19 new cases confirmed over the last 24 hours. That is up from 65 on Sunday but is below the record high of 87 set on Saturday. The latest infections represent the second highest single-day case jump in the area since March and bring's the total case count to 2,543.
Outbreaks continue at eight local seniors' facilities - Chelsey Park, Country Terrace, Dearness Home, McCormick Home, McGarrell Place, People Care Oak Crossing, Sisters of St. Joseph, and Westmount Gardens.
The London Health Sciences Centre continues to work to contain outbreaks at two of its hospitals. Six units at University Hospital and two at Victoria Hospital are affected. The outbreak at University Hospital has infected 79 patients and 76 staff members and left 20 people dead. At Victoria Hospital, less than five patients and less than five employees have contacted the virus. Two deaths have been linked to this outbreak.
Between the two hospitals there are 17 active patient cases and 32 active staff cases.
There are 26 active cases within 17 London-area schools. The latest schools to confirm positive cases include Westminster Secondary, Sir Wilfrid Laurier Secondary, Emily Carr Public, AB Lucas Secondary, Parkside Collegiate, Medway Secondary, and Lord Dorchester Secondary.
There was one new school outbreak confirmed over the weekend at John Paul II Catholic Secondary School in London. That brings the region's total number of school outbreaks to seven. As of last Friday, school-age children began their winter break.
Public health officials said 53 more people have recovered from the virus in London-Middlesex, increasing the resolved cases total to 2,022.
Currently, there are 430 active cases in the region.
In Elgin and Oxford, there were 18 new COVID-19 infections reported on Monday. Southwestern Public Health, the health unit for the two counties, said the latest cases bring the total case count to 935. There were 21 recoveries for a total of 766 resolved cases since the start of the pandemic. The death toll is unchanged at 11. There are currently 158 active cases in the area.
With a province-wide lockdown expected to be announced, Ontario logged another more than 2,100 new COVID-19 cases.
Public health officials reported 2,123 new infections across the province on Monday, just hours before Premier Doug Ford is expected to announce a lockdown that will begin on Christmas Eve. Reports indicate it will last for 28 days for most of the province. Those in the northern region, where COVID-19 cases are lower, would only be locked down for 14 days.
Of the new cases Monday, 1,421 were in the hotspots of Toronto (611), Peel (480), York Region (192), and Windsor-Essex (138).
There have been 158,053 COVID-19 cases in Ontario since March.
Seventeen more deaths linked to the virus across the province were reported. That brings the death toll up to 4,167.
The number of resolved cases rose to 134,867.
There are currently 915 COVID-19 infected patients in hospitals across the province, including 265 in the intensive care unit and 152 on ventilators.
Over the past 24 hours, Ontario processed over 54,500 COVID-19 tests. The province’s positivity rate currently sits at 4 per cent.
