Waterloo Public Health says 21 more employees of Conestogo Meat Packers in Breslau, Ont., have tested positive for the coronavirus, raising the total number of cases from the meatpacking plant to 75.
Waterloo’s acting medical officer of health Dr. Hsiu-Li Wang says that more than 40 of those cases have already been resolved.
Cases were first reported at the plant in early April and by May 1, 11 employees had tested positive.
Last Friday, Wang said the agency had informed Conestoga Meats that the total had risen to 44.
The plant was voluntarily closed for a week at the end of April for cleaning and to put in place new safety measures.
Wang does not believe any of the new cases have occurred since they closure.
“All the cases we have seen so far were possibly exposed during the period prior to the reopening of the plant or may have been exposed patients outside Conestoga Meats.,” she stated Friday while noting that many employees live or carpool together.
“There continues to be the potential of outside influence for the transmission of the virus among the workers at Conestoga Meats, as there is a considerable amount of social interaction between employees,” Wang said.
Across the region, 10 more people have tested positive for coronavirus, public health reported on Friday, raising the total number of positive tests in the area to 983.
No new COVID-19-related deaths were announced, leaving the death toll in Waterloo Region at 108.
Nine more people were cleared of the virus, raising the total number of resolved cases to 557 or 57 per cent.
There are still 11 outbreaks at long-term care or retirement homes in the area as a new one was declared at Columbia Forest Long Term Care Home, while another has been declared at Twin Oaks Of Maryhill in Woolwich.
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