Waterloo Public Health reported 20 new positive tests for COVID-19 on Thursday, lifting the total number of cases in the area to 20,057.
This is the highest announced one-day increase in over two weeks and brings the rolling seven-day average number of new daily cases up to 13.6.
The agency also reported that another 10 people have been cleared of the virus, so the total number of resolved cases now stands at 19,646.
No new COVID-19-related deaths were reported on Thursday, after one was announced on Wednesday involving a woman in her 40s, so the death toll remains at 303, including four victims this month.
This means the area now has 107 active COVID-19 cases, after that number had dropped to 96 on Wednesday.
Eleven of those infected with COVID-19 are currently in area hospitals, with three of those patients currently in need of intensive care.
The area is back up to five active COVID-19 outbreaks after one was declared at Galt Collegiate Institute in Cambridge involving two people. Two of the other four outbreaks are also connected to area schools.
Waterloo Public Health says there have now been 893,423 COVID-19 vaccinations done in the area, 804 more than was reported on Wednesday.
In addition, 443,105 area residents are now fully vaccinated, which is 586 more than was announced 24 hours earlier.
This means that 75.25 per cent of all area residents are now fully vaccinated, a number that climbs to 87.38 per cent when discounting those who are ineligible to be vaccinated.
Elsewhere, Ontario reported 409 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the provincial total to 598,840.
Of the 409 new cases recorded, the data showed 220 were unvaccinated people, 16 were partially vaccinated people, 144 were fully vaccinated people and for 29 people the vaccination status was unknown.
According to Thursday’s report, 54 cases were recorded in Toronto, 45 in Peel Region, 25 in York Region, 27 in Ottawa and 26 in Sudbury.
All other local public health units reported 25 or fewer new cases in the provincial report.
The death toll in the province has risen to 9,865 as three new deaths were recorded.
—with files from Global News’ Jessica Patton