NEWS

Local news in and around Aylmer and Elgin County

All COVID-19 patients unvaccinated: STEGH

November 10, 2021 | 2 Comments

St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital, in a statement Wednesday, Nov. 10, noted that a rising number of patients were being admitted with COVID-19, “all of whom are unvaccinated.” Cases in the Southwestern Public Health region of Elgin, St. Thomas and Oxford “are rising at an alarming rate,” the hospital continued. “STEGH is experiencing our highest…

COVID-19 positivity rate climbs

November 10, 2021 | 0 Comments

The latest information on the percentage of COVID-19 tests coming back positive for the virus in Elgin, St. Thomas and Oxford , from Oct. 31, sets that rate at 5.1 percent. That’s much higher than the 3.1 percent reported a week earlier. Southwestern Public Health Medical Officer of Health Dr. Joyce Lock stated, in response…

Hospitalizations rising again

November 10, 2021 | 0 Comments

Southwestern Public Health was reporting that 11 residents of Elgin, St. Thomas and Oxford were hopsitalized with COVID-19 as of Wednesday, Nov. 10, with five of them in intensive care units. That’s up from eight hopsitalizations, with four in ICUs, from the previous day. Southwestern also recorded 22 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 Wednesday, up…

St. Thomas man, 56, dies after crash in Aylmer

November 10, 2021 | 0 Comments

A St. Thomas man, 56, died after a crash between a sports-utility vehicle and a transport truck in the area of Talbot and King streets in Aylmer on Tuesday night, Nov. 9, at 11:20 p.m. Aylmer Police Deputy Chief Nick Novacich said a 2005 Nissan Murano SUV was being driven east on Talbot Street East…

Southwestern reports 95th COVID-related death

November 9, 2021 | 0 Comments

Southwestern Public Health reported on Tuesday, Nov. 9, that an Elgin woman in her 50s with a confirmed case of COVID-19 had died, bringing the death toll in Elgin, St. Thomas and Oxford since the pandemic began to 95. On Tuesday, the health unit also reported 18 new confirmed cases in its area, about the…

St. Thomas motorcyclist sustains “life-altering” injuries

November 9, 2021 | 0 Comments

A St. Thomas motorcyclist, 59, sustained what Norfolk Ontario Provincial Police described as “life-altering injuries” in a collision with a pickup truck on Highway 3 at Courtland on Saturday, Nov. 6, at about 1:40 p.m. OPP Acting Sergeant Ed Sanchuk reported that the crash occurred at the intersection of Highway 3 and Rhineland Road. The…

Hospitalizations ease in Southwestern area

November 8, 2021 | 0 Comments

Southwestern Public Health reported Monday, Nov. 8, that nine residents of the Elgin, St. Thomas and Oxford region were hospitalized with COVID-19, four of them in intensive care units. That’s down from 13 hospitalizations last Friday, but the number in ICUs has increased by one. Southwestern announced Monday that 52 new cases of COVID-19 had…

Two injured, one critically, in Imperial Road crash–correction

November 6, 2021 | 0 Comments

Two motorists were injured, one critically, after a vehicle hit a tree on Imperial Road near Rush Creek Line in Malahide in the early-morning hours of Saturday, Nov. 6. Constable Norm Kelso of Elgin Ontario Provincial Police said OPP officers, Malahide firefighters and Elgin paramedics were called to the scene at about 1:10 a.m. The…

STEGH sticks by vaccine requirement for staff

November 5, 2021 | 1 Comment

St. Thomas Elgin General hospital, in a statement posted Friday, Nov. 5, said it has admitted “a very high number” of unvaccinated COVID-19 patients in the last few weeks. As a result, despite Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s stand this week that the province won’t require hospital and other health care workers to have mandatory COVID-19…

Surge in COVID-19 cases locally

November 5, 2021 | 2 Comments

Southwestern Public Health reported 32 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Elgin, St. Thomas and Oxford on Friday, Nov. 5, up from 21 on Thursday. The number of ongoing cases being tracked by the health unit also rose, to 121 Friday from 95 Thursday. in addition, 13 Southwestern residents are hospitalized with COVID-19, four of…

Aylmer still COVID-19 hotspot

November 4, 2021 | 0 Comments

Southwestern Public Health was reporting 21 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Elgin, St. Thomas and Oxford on Thursday, Nov. 4, up from 15 the previous day. The health unit is now tracking 95 cases, up from 85 Wednesday. Eleven residents of the region are hospitalized with COVID-19, two in intensive care units. Aylmer and…

Warning of renewed COVID-19 restrictions

November 4, 2021 | 1 Comment

Recent increases in the number of COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths in Elgin, St. Thomas and Oxford has led Southwestern Public Health Medical Officer of Health Dr. Joyce Lock to warn of the potential return of pandemic restrictions in the region. During a news briefing on Thursday, Nov. 4, she reported that 21 new confirmed…