Still more deaths from COVID-19 in Southwestern area

Southwestern Public Health announced on Wednesday, Dec. 8, the COVID-19 related deaths of a St. Thomas man in his 50s and an Oxford man in his 70s.

That brings the total number of such deaths so far this month to seven, with six of the fatalities from Elgin and St. Thomas.

The death toll since the COVID-19 pandemic began in Elgin, St. Thomas and Oxford now stands at 105.

The health unit also reported 20 new cases of COVID-19 had been confirmed Wednesday morning, d0wn from 36 the previous day. The number of ongoing cases being tracked by SWPH declined to 199 from 203.

The rate of COVID-19 tests coming back as positive for COVID-19 stood at 5.3 percent as of Nov. 28, down from 5.7 percent on Nov. 21.

Eleven residents of the Southwestern region are in hospital with the virus, four of them in intensive care units.

Local ongoing cases include 55 in St. Thomas and area, 29 in Aylmer and area, six in Bayham, five in Malahide, three in Central Elgin and one in Dutton Dunwich.

The rate of ongoing cases in the region stands at 94.1 per 100,000 of population, down from 95.5 on Tuesday.

Across Ontario, 1,009 new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed on Wednesday, up from 928 the previous day.