CBC Windsor July 30 COVID-19 update: 10 new cases today
Health unit says outbreaks among Low German speaking communities across southwestern Ontario
The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit reported 10 new COVID-19 cases in our region Thursday.
That's the lowest daily count of new cases since July 12.
Six of the new cases are attributed to community spread of the virus, three are among farm workers, and one case is still under investigation.
The health unit said Thursday there is a "surge" of COVID-19 cases among Low German speaking communities across southwestern Ontario, including in Leamington and Kingsville.
Medical officer of health, Dr. Wajid Ahmed, said members of this particular community are at a higher risk of contracting the virus due to traditional cultural practices which allows for gatherings.
Ahmed said the health unit wants to "make sure they understand the severity of what we are seeing locally," and that citizens of the Low German speaking communities have tools to protect themselves against COVID-19, including education about the importance of physical distancing.
CK Public Health released a press statement Tuesday in relation to the outbreak among the population, acknowledging they are monitoring the outbreaks being seen.
WATCH | The health unit's COVID-19 update for July 30:
On Wednesday, the health unit reported 30 new cases of the disease in our community, and that another person has died. Two people have died after testing positive for COVID-19 this week — one man in his 70s and a woman in her 80s.
Windsor-Essex last region in Ontario in Stage 2
The high rate of COVID-19 in our region has once again held back Windsor-Essex from moving forward into the next stage of reopening.
On Wednesday, the Ontario government announced that Toronto and Peel Region will move into Stage 3 of the province's COVID-19 recovery plan this Friday, as the province reported its fewest number of new cases since March 23.
Windsor-Essex, the only other area of the province that is still in Stage 2, will not be permitted to proceed to the next phase at this point.
CBC Asks | Is the community getting the message from public health about the spread of COVID-19?
Ahmed said he spoke with provincial officials Tuesday night to discuss the situation in Windsor-Essex.
"The province does not want to move us into Stage 3 too soon and then have to move us back," said Ahmed.
Challenges that have risen after other regions entered Stage 3, the rise of local cases and the number of people that have now been hospitalized are all factors as to why our area has been held back.
Ahmed said officials will review the numbers in a few days, hoping to see the local rates on par with the provincial average.
In a press statement, the Ontario government said officials would "continue to monitor local trends of key public health indicators in the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit region and move it into Stage 3 when it is safe to do so."
The province said they would continue on-site farm testing, deploy mobile testing units if necessary and adopt "new public health guidance for positive asymptomatic workers for all workplaces" in our region.
Although the high rate is attributed to outbreaks on farms, Ahmed said the spread among close contacts in Windsor is on the rise. He said there are as many as five or six contacts per household that is leading to new cases as well.
Windsor-Essex outbreaks
There are currently 12 workplaces under a COVID-19 outbreak, which means two or more employees have tested positive for the disease.
That includes one construction company in Leamington, one manufacturing workplace in Tecumseh, two in Kingsville, one in Leamington and two in Windsor.
There are also five outbreaks in the agricultural sector in Leamington and Kingsville. So far, there have been 1,096 total cases of the virus detected among workers in the agri-farm sector.
Three long-term care facilities and retirement homes are also experiencing outbreaks in the region.
Chartwell in Leamington has two staff members who have tested positive for COVID-19. The Village of Aspen Lake in Windsor and Kingsville's Augustine Villas also have two staff members each who tested positive.
COVID-19 in Sarnia-Lambton
Lambton Public Health reported no new cases of COVID-19 in the region. There have been 299 total cases and overall, there have been 25 deaths.
Another 264 people have recovered.
COVID-19 in Chatham-Kent
Chatham-Kent's health unit is reporting eight new cases of COVID-19. The area has had 241 total cases.
Four people are in hospital and 50 others are self-isolating with the disease.
In Chatham-Kent, one person has died due to COVID-19 and 186 people have recovered.
