Toronto’s medical officer of health said for the first time during the COVID-19 pandemic, the city has recorded more than 1,000 new coronavirus cases within 24 hours.
Dr. Eileen de Villa said Toronto hit a record high of 1,069 new infections for Wednesday, and more than half of the new cases were from people aged 20 to 49. Toronto Public Health had previously recorded a single-day record on Tuesday with 957 confirmed and probable cases.
She also said she is “not convinced” the recently reported COVID-19 cases are connected to the Christmas holidays.
“While it is now five days since Christmas Day, I am not convinced that these cases are connected to it,” de Villa said during a news conference on Wednesday.
De Villa reiterated that cases are generally confirmed many days after infection and “we estimate usually between one to two weeks following.”
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“It is now reasonable that we should brace for an extended period of potentially unsettling and discouraging numbers in terms of COVID-19 infections in Toronto,” she said.
De Villa also added that the level of infection in every Toronto neighbourhood meets the province’s criteria for red zone designation.
In the most recent data from Dec. 14 to Dec. 20, an online case survey indicated that 21 per cent of respondents reported gathering in a private home and with people who weren’t members of their household, de Villa said.
“Our fear is these results, in fact, underestimate the degree to which people were mixing over the holidays,” she said.
De Villa also said Toronto Public Health will be ramping up additional action for COVID-19 in workplaces.
On Wednesday, Ontario also reported a single-day record of 2,923 new cases.
“We will need to believe that we can change things, and act like it, in the next few weeks. Particularly if we have to get through a period of discouraging case counts. We should prepare for the numbers. And we should act to make certain that they will come down,” de Villa said.
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