New COVID-19 outbreak declared at elementary school in Waterloo

A new outbreak was announced at Lincoln Heights Public School in Waterloo on Sunday evening by the Waterloo Region District School Board.

It says two students in the same cohort tested positive for the coronavirus.

The board notes that anyone who may be connected to the students was already in isolation once the initial case was reported on Dec. 15.

The outbreak at Lincoln Heights school is one of four active ones in the area as we head into the Christmas break.

The others are at Hillcrest Public School and Monsignor Doyle Catholic Secondary School in Cambridge as well as Franklin Public School in Kitchener.

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A new outbreak was also reported over the weekend in the MacDonald Hall Residence at Wilfrid Laurier University after two positive tests for COVID-19.

Across town, an outbreak was declared over at a residence (Claudette Millar Hall) at the University of Waterloo, which began on Dec. 10 after two positive tests were linked.

Two other new outbreaks were reported over the weekend, one in a dental office and a second active outbreak at a manufacturing facility.

Outbreaks also came to an end at the Nithview Home in New Hamburg, two congregate settings and Sunnyside Supportive Housing in Waterloo.

There are now 28 active outbreaks in the area, with the largest at Cambridge Country Manor now reporting over 100 cases.

There were two deaths in the area over the weekend, with both being linked to the long-term care home, which is now being managed by Cambridge Memorial Hospital.

The two deaths bring the death toll in the area to 142.

Waterloo Public Health reported 180 new positive tests for the coronavirus over the weekend, bringing the total number of cases in the area to 5,007.

A total of 124 people were also reported to be cleared of the virus, bringing the total number of resolved cases in the area to 4,291.