Public health officials in Huron and Perth counties have recorded four COVID-related deaths since Friday, linking three to an outbreak at Queensway Nursing Home in Bluewater.
Two deaths, including one not linked to any outbreaks, were reported Monday. The others were recorded on Friday, Huron Perth public health confirmed.
The new COVID-related deaths bring the region’s pandemic total to 90.
Four long-term care outbreaks were active in Huron-Perth on Monday. The ongoing outbreak at Queensway in Bluewater, between Exeter and Clinton, has affected 32 residents and 12 staff members since it was declared Jan. 27, according to the health unit’s COVID-19 dashboard.
It was unclear Monday how many of those cases are considered active.
Two hospital outbreaks were also active in Huron County on Monday, one at Clinton Public Hospital and the other at South Huron Hospital.
Eight people from Huron and Perth counties were in hospital Monday due to COVID-19 or a related complication.
Huron-Perth reported 57 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Monday, though that figure is only capturing people in high-risk settings.
About 80 per cent of people in Huron-Perth older than five have received two doses of COVID-19 vaccine, while about 50 per cent have received booster shots, according to health unit figures updated Monday.
Ontario reported 11 new COVID-19 deaths on Monday, a significant drop from the 32 new deaths reported a week ago. The new deaths included some from a data cleanup.
The province also reported 2,088 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday, another major decline compared to the 3,043 new cases reported a week earlier. New cases are considered an underestimate of the true number because of the reduced availability of testing.
As of Monday morning, 2,155 people in the province were hospitalized with COVID-19. There were 486 people in Ontario ICUs with COVID-19, with 283 of these patients on a ventilator. Not all hospitals report on the weekend.
The effective reproduction number R
pso1