Ontario reporting record number of COVID-19 cases – Whitby, Oshawa, Ajax helping Durham record seven-day average of 453

The numbers are not rising dramatically each day like last week, but with Ontario reporting a record high of 10,436 cases yesterday, it’s also abundantly clear the Omicron variant has not reached its peak just yet.

Durham Region’s high-water mark was reached Friday when 587 people tested positive for the virus, the day after the old record of 479 new cases and the first death in the region in several months. Friday’s numbers were followed by a relatively low total of 383 on Christmas Day and new case daily numbers of 476, 489 and 443 since then.

Oshawa and Whitby reported 249 cases between them last Friday, with Ajax (101) and Pickering (94) also reporting plus-90 numbers. Whitby reported three more plus-100 days since – dropping to 73 new cases yesterday – and now has a seven-day average of about 95 new cases per day, just ahead of Oshawa (94) and Ajax (93).

Durham’s seven-day average is 453. Every municipality has reported record number of cases in the past week. Even Uxbridge has two 23 new case days since Friday.

The active case count, which was at a record 2,029 cases on Thursday, now stands at 3,804. There are five people in hospital with one in ICU.

There are eight outbreaks declared in retirement and long-term care homes, with at least 21 residents and staff affected. The biggest outbreaks right now are at Port Perry Place long-term care home with eight residents affected, and Westney Gardens Retirement Home in Ajax with six residents self-isolating.

Thirteen schools and day care centres have reported outbreaks, including Happy Tots Day Nursery in Oshawa, with four children now infected with the virus.

There are nine workplace outbreaks, with two each in retail, manufacturing and corporate and one each in business, food & beverage and healthcare.

The percentage of children aged 5-11 who have now received the virus has topped 40 per cent.