COVID-19: Nine new cases in the City of Kawartha Lakes; HKPR active cases dip to 14

The Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit reported nine new cases of COVID-19 in the City of Kawartha Lakes, according to data released on Friday.

The new cases cover the past 48 hours as the health unit did not provide a case update on Thursday.

The number of active cases, however, decreased to 14 from 16 reported on Wednesday. There are 13 active cases in the Kawarthas (down by two) and one in Haliburton County.

The health unit’s 2,144 cumulative resolved cases make up 96.4 per cent of the health unit’s 2,221 total cases since the pandemic was declared in March 2020.

The number of variant cases increased to 833, up from 829 reported on Wednesday. Total variant cases include 450 in the Kawarthas (four more), 346 in Northumberland County and 37 in Haliburton County.

There remains one active outbreak at the Kawartha Lakes Haliburton (KLH) Housing Corp. residence at 68 Lindsay St. N. in Lindsay. Initially declared on Canada Day, the outbreak has had up to 20 cases. The Delta variant has been identified in at least one of the confirmed cases.

Since the pandemic was first declared, the health unit has dealt with 70 outbreaks — 29 of them at long-term care facilities, 11 at workplace settings, 10 at congregate settings, nine at schools, 10 at “other community settings” and one at a hospital.

• Tests: 67,763 individuals have been tested for COVID-19 since the pandemic was declared in March 2020. The health unit notes 211,127 tests have been completed.
• Deaths: 76 since the pandemic was declared. The latest virus-related death was reported on June 29 in the City of Kawartha Lakes. There have been 58 deaths among people who tested positive for COVID-19 in the Kawarthas, 17 in Northumberland County and one in Haliburton County.
• High-risk contacts: 59, up from 23 reported on Wednesday.
• Hospitalized COVID-19 cases to date: 85 — unchanged since Monday. There is one hospitalized case with no cases reported in an intensive care unit (unchanged since July 13). Ross Memorial Hospital in Lindsay reported zero admitted COVID-19 patients (unchanged since Monday). Since the pandemic began, there have been 50 hospitalized cases in the City of Kawartha Lakes, 32 in Northumberland County and three in Haliburton County.

1:50 HKPR might use cancellation tactic to bump up 2nd shots

The Trent Hills COVID-19 Assessment Centre will begin operating at two days per week beginning Monday, July 26.

Formerly run by the Trent Hills Family Health Team, the centre came under Campbellford Memorial Hospital’s purview in November of 2020. Since that time, the centre has had over 5,680 visits.

The centre will now operate on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The centre is staffed by a hospital RPN. The centre phone (705-395-1801) will continue to receive voicemail messages

“This is a long-anticipated benchmark in our fight against COVID-19,” said Margaret Beatty, president and CEO of CMH.

“I want to thank Northumberland Paramedic Services for their ongoing support over the last 9+ months. Without their staff, we would not have been able to manage the assessment centre so successfully.”

The health unit is hosting mass immunization walk-in clinics in Cobourg, Fenelon Falls and Minden for a first or second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. No appointments are necessary at the following clinic locations (people are asked to bring their health card). Clinic dates are listed on the health unit’s website.

• Cobourg Community Centre – 750 D’Arcy St., Cobourg – 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Fenelon Falls Community Centre – 27 Veterans Way, Fenelon Falls – 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• S.G. Nesbitt Memorial Arena – 55 Parkside St., Minden – 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Individuals can visit Ontario.ca/bookvaccine or call 1-833-943-3900 to move up their appointment.

Ross Memorial Hospital is also hosting no appointment clinics weekdays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at its drive-thru clinic at the Lindsay Exhibition fairgrounds at 354 Angeline St. S.

A special evening walk-in clinic will be held Tuesday, July 27, offering both Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines. No appointment necessary.