The Windsor Essex County Health Unit reported 39 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday.
It also reported five more deaths connected to the virus in the region. Five of the deaths involved residents of the general population between the ages of 60 and 90. A woman who lived in a long-term care home also passed away after contracting the virus.
There are 452 known active cases of COVID-19 in Windsor-Essex.
Medical Officer of Health Dr. Wajid Ahmed presented further evidence Wednesday to support his recommendation that schools in Windsor-Essex reopen.
Case rates in the community continue to decline. The current case rate is 89 per 100,000 population while at one time the case rate was 360 per 100,000.
“Our school-aged cases are dropping below our overall case rate which is a good sign, suggesting that there is minimal or low-risk with respect to the school-aged children returning back to school,” said Dr. Ahmed.
The percentage of tests coming back positive also continues to decline. The positivity rate is slightly higher in school-aged children then in the general population, however Dr. Ahmed said this is to be expected because most of the children being tested are symptomatic.
The provincial government announced Wednesday afternoon that Windsor-Essex schools will re-open to in-person learning on Monday February 8, 2021.
