There have now been 450 deaths related to COVID-19 in Ottawa since the start of the pandemic, according to the latest update from the local public health unit.
Ottawa Public Health said Wednesday that one additional person died in connection with the novel coronavirus in the past 24 hours.
The higher death toll comes as OPH reports 62 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday and the city’s top doctor warns coronavirus restrictions in Ottawa will likely tighten in the coming days.
Dr. Vera Etches said Tuesday that numerous COVID-19 monitoring indicators in Ottawa have passed into the threshold for the red-control zone on Ontario’s colour-coded reopening framework.
Ottawa’s incidence rate for COVID-19 stands at 48.8 cases per 100,000 people as of Wednesday, with 40 cases per 100,000 marking the bar for Ontario’s red zone.
The city’s coronavirus positivity rate remains at 2.5 per cent, matching the red zone threshold.
While the call hasn’t been made at the provincial level yet, Etches said she expects the city will shift from orange to red within the week.
Tighter restrictions would mean movie theatres in the nation’s capital would have to close and capacity limits would be set at 10 people for indoor dining at bars and restaurants.
There are, however, a few bright spots in the recent coronavirus trends in Ottawa.
The number of people in hospital with COVID-19 is down to 18 — half the number reported from Sunday — with five patients in the intensive care unit.
Active cases in the city are also down slightly to 605.
The number of ongoing coronavirus outbreaks in Ottawa stands at 37 as of Wednesday.
Nearly 80,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have now been administered in Ottawa out of a total 86,640 doses received in the city, according to OPH.
The city’s second community coronavirus vaccination clinic at the Ruddy Family YMCA-YWCA opened its doors in Orléans on Wednesday.