New COVID-19 restrictions coming

As case numbers continue to rise, Southwestern Public Health Medical Officer of Health Dr. Joyce Lock advised Tuesday, Nov. 16, that new COVID-19 restrictions would be put in place within the next seven days or so.

She didn’t specify what the restrictions would be, but did say they would focus on indoor spaces where transmission of the virus was much more likely than outdoors.

Southwestern Public Health on the same day reported that the number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients in critical care in area hospitals had risen to eight from six on Monday.

The total number of hospitalizations remained unchanged at 15.

The health unit recorded 24 new confirmed cases of COVID in Elgin, St. Thomas and Oxford Tuesday, up from an average of 22 daily over the weekend but below a two-day spike last Thursday and Friday when the daily average was 29.

SWPH was on Tuesday tracking 161 ongoing cases of the virus in its region, up from 126 the previous week. The current case rate is 76.1 cases per 100,000 of population.

Aylmer and area, which has more ongoing cases than any single other part of the health unit’s territory, had 41 Tuesday, while St. Thomas and area had 26 despite having a much higher population. Bayham had 11, West Elgin two and Central Elgin and Malahide one each.

In Oxford, Woodstock and area was leading with 37 cases followed by Tillsonburg and area with 26.

Across Ontario, 481 new Covid cases were confirmed Tuesday.