OTTAWA -- Ottawa Public Health is reporting 117 more people in Ottawa have tested positive for COVID-19, marking a full week of daily case counts in the triple digits.

This is the longest streak of daily cases above 100 that Ottawa has seen since the pandemic started.

Since the first case of COVID-19 in Ottawa was confirmed on March 11, 2020, the city has seen 17,294 total laboratory confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus.

One more person in Ottawa has died of COVID-19, bringing the city's death toll to 464 residents.

There were 2,333 new COVID-19 cases reported across Ontario on Wednesday. Public Health Ontario also reported 15 new deaths and 1,973 newly resolved cases provincewide. Ontario health officials reported 124 new cases in Ottawa on Wednesday. Figures from OPH often differ from those from the province because the data for the respective daily reports are pulled at different times of day.

The new figures bring Ottawa's key incidence rate to more than 90 cases per 100,000 residents in the past seven days. The minimum threshold for the "Red-Control" zone is 40. Ottawa's testing positivity rate also jumped to just under 6 per cent.

OTTAWA'S KEY COVID-19 STATISTICS

Ottawa is in "Red-Control" status under Ontario's COVID-19 framework.

Ottawa Public Health data:

  • COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (March 23-29): 91.6
  • Positivity rate in Ottawa: 5.9 per cent (March 23-29)
  • Reproduction number: 1.11 (seven day average)

Reproduction values greater than 1 indicate the virus is spreading and each case infects more than one contact. If it is less than 1, it means spread is slowing.

The red-control threshold is a weekly incidence rate of 40 or more cases per 100,000 people and a positivity rate of 2.5 per cent or higher and a reproduction number of 1.2 or more.

The orange-restrict category of Ontario's COVID-19 framework includes a weekly rate of cases per 100,000 between 25 to 39.9, a percent positivity of 1.3 to 2.4 per cent, and a reproduction number of approximately 1 to 1.1.  

VACCINES IN OTTAWA

As of March 31:

  • First vaccine doses administered: 113,438
  • Second vaccine doses administered: 26,531
  • Total doses received: 176,410

OPH says the city received a shipment of 36,270 doses of the Pfizer vaccine on March 29.

VARIANTS OF CONCERN

Ottawa Public Health data*:

  • Total B.1.1.7 (UK variant) cases: 23
  • Total B.1.351 (South Africa variant) cases: 6
  • Total P.1 (Brazil variant) cases: 0
  • Total variant/mutation cases: 589
  • Deaths linked to variants/mutations: 4

*OPH notes that that VOC and mutation trends must be treated with caution due to the varying time required to complete VOC testing and/or genomic analysis following the initial positive test for SARS-CoV-2. Test results may be completed in batches and data corrections or updates can result in changes to case counts that may differ from past reports.

HOSPITALIZATIONS IN OTTAWA

There are 39 people in Ottawa-area hospitals with COVID-19 related illnesses.

Eleven people are in the intensive care unit, down from 13 on Tuesday.

Of the people in hospital, three are in their 30s, three are in their 40s, seven are in their 50s (four are in the ICU), eight are in their 60s (four are in the ICU), six are in their 70s (three are in the ICU), 11 are in their 80s and one is 90 or older.

ACTIVE CASES OF COVID-19 IN OTTAWA

There are 1,233 active cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa, up from 1,185 active cases on Tuesday.

Sixty-eight more Ottawa residents have recovered after testing positive for COVID-19. Ottawa Public ealth reports 15,597 resolved cases of COVID-19 in the capital.

The number of active cases is the number of total cases of COVID-19 minus the numbers of resolved cases and deaths. A case is considered resolved 14 days after known symptom onset or positive test result.

 

COVID-19 TESTING IN OTTAWA

The Ottawa COVID-19 Testing Taskforce will provide an update on local testing figures later today.

Across Ontario, 52,532 COVID-19 tests were completed on Tuesday.

COVID-19 CASES IN OTTAWA BY AGE CATEGORY

  • 0-9 years old: 15 new cases (1,326 total cases)
  • 10-19 years-old: 23 new cases (2,224 total cases)
  • 20-29 years-old: 18 new cases (3,791 total cases)
  • 30-39 years-old: 21 new cases (2,479 total cases)
  • 40-49 years-old: 13 new cases (2,218 total cases)
  • 50-59 years-old: 14 new cases (2,073 total cases)
  • 60-69-years-old: 8 new cases (1,243 total cases)
  • 70-79 years-old: 4 new cases (728 total cases)
  • 80-89 years-old: 1 new case (734 total cases)
  • 90+ years old: 0 new cases (475 total cases)
  • Unknown: 0 new cases (3 cases total)

COVID-19 CASES ACROSS THE REGION

  • Eastern Ontario Health Unit: 20 new cases
  • Hastings Prince Edward Public Health: 7 new cases
  • Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox and Addington Public Health: 7 new cases
  • Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District Health Unit: 6 new cases
  • Renfrew County and District Health Unit: 0 new cases
  • Outaouais (Gatineau and western Quebec): 100 new cases

INSTITUTIONAL OUTBREAKS

Ottawa Public Health is reporting COVID-19 outbreaks at 34 institutions in Ottawa, including long-term care homes, retirement homes, daycares, hospitals and schools.

There are 10 active community outbreaks: three are in restaurants, two are in services workplaces, one is linked to a private event, one is linked to sports and recreation one is linked to construction, one is linked to a recreational workplace, and one is linked to a retail workplace.

The schools and childcare spaces currently experiencing outbreaks are:

  1. École élémentaire publique Séraphin-Marion (March 14)
  2. St. Luke's Childcare Centre (March 15)
  3. École élémentaire catholique Arc-en-Ciel (March 19)
  4. École élémentaire catholique Horizon-Jeunesse (March 19)
  5. École secondaire catholique Franco-Cité (March 21)
  6. Fallingbrook Community Elementary School (March 23)
  7. École secondaire publique Louis-Riel (March 25)
  8. St. Peter High School (March 26)
  9. St. Gabriel Elementary School (March 29) [NEW]

The long-term care homes, retirement homes, hospitals, and other spaces currently experiencing outbreaks are:

  1. Shelter (Jan. 26)
  2. The Ottawa Hospital Civic Campus (Feb. 19)
  3. St. Vincent Hospital (March 6)
  4. Extendicare Medex (March 9)
  5. Peter D. Clark LTCH (March 10)
  6. Group Home (March 11)
  7. University of Ottawa Heart Institute (March 12)
  8. Chapel Hill RH (March 13)
  9. The Ottawa Hospital Civic Campus (March 13)
  10. St. Patrick's Home (March 14)
  11. St. Vincent Hospital (March 15)
  12. Carlingview Manor (March 16)
  13. University of Ottawa Heart Institute (March 16)
  14. Elisabeth Bruyere Hospital (March 18)
  15. Portobello Retirement Residence (March 18)
  16. Extendicare West End Villa (March 19)
  17. Shelter (March 21)
  18. University of Ottawa Heart Institute (March 21)
  19. Supported Independent Living (March 23)
  20. Timberwalk Retirement Home (March 24)
  21. Longfields Manor (March 24)
  22. University of Ottawa Heart Institute (March 26)
  23. Jardin Royal Garden (March 27)
  24. Sisters of Charity (March 28)
  25. Landmark Court Retirement Home (March 29) [NEW]

A single laboratory-confirmed case of COVID-19 in a resident or staff member of a long-term care home, retirement home or shelter triggers an outbreak response, according to Ottawa Public Health. In childcare settings, two children or staff or household member cases of laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 within a 14-day period where at least one case could have reasonably acquired their infection in the childcare establishment is considered an outbreak in a childcare establishment.

Under provincial guidelines, a COVID-19 outbreak in a school is defined as two or more lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases in students and/or staff in a school with an epidemiological link, within a 14-day period, where at least one case could have reasonably acquired their infection in the school (including transportation and before or after school care).

Two staff or patient cases of laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 within a specified hospital unit within a 14-day period where both cases could have reasonably acquired their infection in hospital is considered an outbreak in a public hospital.