The Middlesex-London Health Unit (MLHU) reported four new cases of the novel coronavirus on Saturday.
There were no reports of any new deaths, and the number of recoveries has risen by six.
This brings the total number of COVID-19 cases in the region to 576, and the number of recoveries to 435.
The death toll stands at 57.
Health officials say all new cases are from London, and none are related to any outbreaks at seniors’ homes.
London’s chief medical officer of health Dr. Chris Mackie said Friday none of the new cases this week were linked to the Black Lives Matter Rally that saw 10,000 protestors flood Victoria Park in London on Saturday.
The health unit also reported one new case on Thursday involving an EMDC inmate.
At least 538 cases have been reported in London, followed by 20 cases in Strathroy-Caradoc, seven in Middlesex Centre, five in North Middlesex, four in Thames Centre and one each in Lucan Biddulph and Southwest Middlesex.
Health-care workers make up nearly a quarter of all cases.
The number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients in London remains under five, according to London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC).
The organization had announced it would no longer provide an exact figure of patients being treated at University and Victoria hospitals unless the tally is five or greater.
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Hospitalizations account for around 19 per cent of all cases in London and Middlesex. About a quarter of those patients have needed to be admitted to intensive care.
Updated staff infection rates at LHSC are also not being released unless the tally rises by five or more, the organization said last week. The last count, released early last week, reported 42 had tested positive during the pandemic.
The health unit says outbreaks at two seniors’ facilities remain active — one at Chelsey Park Retirement Community, the other at Kensington Village.
The outbreak at Chelsey Park, declared May 30, is the most recent outbreak to be reported in the region. The Kensington Village outbreak has been active since April 3, according to the health unit.
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Outbreaks at long-term care and retirement homes make up 169 of the region’s cases and 37 of its deaths. They also account for at least 19 of the 24 outbreaks that have been reported since the pandemic began.
Long-term care homes have seen 102 cases involving 60 residents and 42 staff, as well as 24 deaths, while retirement homes have seen 67 cases involving 44 residents and 23 staff, and 13 deaths.
The last case to be reported at a seniors’ facility was on June 4, according to the health unit.
Ontario
Provincially, Ontario reported 266 new cases of the novel coronavirus on Saturday, bringing the provincial total to 31,992.
Nine new deaths were also announced, bringing the total fatalities attributed to the virus to 2,507.
A total of 26,538 cases are considered resolved, which makes up 83 per cent of all confirmed cases.
More than 27,400 additional tests have been conducted — remaining near an all-time high — bringing the total number completed in the province to 980,471. Around 26,200 cases are under investigation.
Nationally, Canada is seeing 97,927 cases, 8,049 deaths, and 58,523 recoveries. More than 2.1 million tests have been administered.
Elgin and Oxford
There were no changes in the COVID-19 numbers in the region as of Saturday.
The total number of cases remains the same as the day before at 80, with 70 recoveries and four deaths.
Southwestern Public Health (SWPH) said Saturday six cases remain active in the region, including four in Oxford County — three in East Zorra-Tavistock and one in Tillsonburg — and two in Elgin County, both in St. Thomas.
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No new outbreaks have been reported, keeping that figure at three.
The number of tests conducted by the health unit stood at 6,742 as of Saturday, with 582 tests awaiting results.
The test per cent positivity rate for Elgin and Oxford remains at 1.3 per cent.
Huron and Perth
Health officials with Huron Perth Public Health (HPPH) did not release an update Saturday.
As of Friday, the region was seeing 56 cases of COVID-19 — one more compared to Thursday, five deaths and 47 recoveries.
The newest case was confirmed in Perth County.
In total, 26 cases have been reported in Stratford, while 14 cases have been reported in Huron County and 12 in Perth County.
St. Mary’s has seen four cases and one death.
Four deaths have also been reported in Stratford, linked to an outbreak that ended more than a month ago at Greenwood Court that saw six residents and 10 staff test positive.
A total of seven outbreaks have been declared, all of which have been resolved.
The health unit said 4,485 tests had been administered in Huron and Perth as of Friday. Of those, 78 were awaiting test results.
Sarnia and Lambton
The numbers related to COVID-19 remain unchanged in the region on Saturday.
The total number of confirmed cases sits at 274, with 233 recoveries, 25 deaths, and 16 active cases as of late Friday evening.
Officials with Lambton Public Health (LPH) say three people tested positive for the novel coronavirus late Thursday, and none of the newest cases were associated with an active outbreak at Vision Nursing Home, a long-term care facility in Sarnia that has had an ongoing outbreak since April 23.
Twenty-eight staff members and 26 residents at the home have tested positive during the outbreak. Ten residents have since died. It’s not clear how many cases are active. It is the only active outbreak in the county and is the worst that has been seen in the region.
Forty per cent of the county’s cases are outbreak-related, LPH says.
At Bluewater Health, which has taken in active resident cases from Vision, two COVID-19 patients were being treated on Saturday, nine less from the day before, along with 21 who were suspected positive or who were awaiting tests — a decrease of 16 from Friday.
As of late Friday, LPH said 9,082 test results had been received by health officials so far. The percentage of tests that come back positive stands at 3.0 per cent.
— With files from Global News’ Ryan Rocca and Matthew Trevithick
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