A second workplace COVID-19 outbreak has been reported in Chatham-Kent but according to public health officials there's no risk to the public.
The local public health unit said the latest workplace outbreak reported on Wednesday doesn't pose a risk to the community because it is not open to the public. Jeff Moco of Chatham-Kent Public Health said there are four cases associated with the most recent workplace outbreak but none of them are Chatham-Kent residents. Moco added the workplace outbreak reported on Tuesday is also not open to the public. He said that outbreak has three cases associated with it and they are residents of the municipality.
The workplaces have not been named because the public heath unit has a practice of not identifying workplaces in outbreak that don't pose a risk to the public. The outbreaks at A.A. Wright Public School in Wallaceburg and Hudson Manor Retirement Home in Tilbury continue with five cases at the school and two cases at the home. The number of cases linked to those two outbreaks have remained the same over the past few days.
Public health officials also reported another local COVID-19 patient in the hospital in Chatham to bring the total number of patients currently trying to recover from the virus in the hospital to four. There were also nine new cases reported on Wednesday and 10 recovered cases. The total number of active cases is down to 79 and the number of deaths remains at 10.
At local Catholic schools, Holy Family Catholic School in Wallaceburg still has three student cases and two classes closed, Ursuline College Chatham also has three student cases and two classes closed, and St. Joseph Catholic School in Tilbury has three probable cases and three classes closed.
At local public schools, one new student case has been reported at Chatham-Kent Secondary School, two student cases have been reported at H. W. Burgess Public School in Wallaceburg, Dresden Area Central School is up to two student cases, there's still one student case at Tilbury Area Public School, Lambton-Kent Composite School in Dresden still has one student case, and Wallaceburg District Secondary School still has two student cases and one staff case.
Chatham-Kent Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Colby previously said all of the school cases are the result of exposure outside of the school. All of the schools remain open. Colby added any students and staff who may have been in potential contact with the cases are being contacted and are isolating if necessary.
Chatham-Kent remains in the Red-Control level of Ontario’s COVID-19 Reopening Framework.
Walpole Island has 20 active cases after six new cases and four resolved cases were reported.
