There was a slight decrease in the number of new COVID-19 cases in London-Middlesex on Tuesday.
The Middlesex London Health Unit reported 11 new infections. That is down from 20 on Monday, but is the fifth straight day the area has recorded a double-digit increase.
Public health officials have said if daily cases continue to trend in this direction, it is possible the province will shift the London region to the yellow or "protect" level of its five-tiered system for COVID-19 shutdowns. London and Middlesex County are currently listed in the green or "prevent" category, which has the loosest restrictions.
The total number of cases in the region since the start of the pandemic stands at 1,278.
Among the new cases reported Tuesday is a resident at a local retirement home. Currently, there is only one outbreak associated with an area long-term care or retirement facilities - Henley Place LTC Residence. An outbreak of the virus at Chartwell Royalcliffe Retirement Residence was declared over on Monday.
Arthur Ford public school was the latest London school to report a positive case. An individual within the school's before-and after-school program was confirmed to have the virus, the Thames Valley District School Board said. Parents and staff were notified and those considered to be at risk are being contacted by the health unit. The school remains open.
There were ten more recoveries in the area on Tuesday, bringing the number of resolved cases to 1,092. The death toll is unchanged at 63.
Currently, there are 123 active cases in the London-area.
Southwestern Public Health reported another half a dozen new infections on Tuesday. It is the second day in a row there have been six cases in Elgin and Oxford County. They bring the total case count up to 386. The number of resolved cases jumped significantly to 351, with 29 additional recoveries recorded over the past 24 hours. There has not been a COVID-19 linked death in the region since July, leaving the death toll at five. Active cases stand at 30.
Ontario reported a new record high for new cases in its daily report. Health Minister Christine Elliott said there were 1,388 new cases reported on Tuesday, based on 29,100 tests. That is a 5.7 per cent positivity rate, the highest of the second wave of the pandemic. Another 15 deaths were reported. Ontario is averaging more than 13 deaths per day over the last week.
The number of active cases is above 10,000 for the first time. Hospitalizations went from 367 to 422 over the last 24 hours.
Of the 1,388 new cases, 520 were in Toronto, 395 in Peel, and 100 in York Region.
There were 781 more recoveries in Ontario to bring the number of resolved cases to 73,417.
