2 COVID-related deaths reported in Waterloo region Tuesday

Two women have died after contracting COVID-19, Region of Waterloo Public Health reported Tuesday.

One woman was in her 70s and one was in her 80s and the region's dashboard showed one of them was a resident at Trinity Village Studios retirement home in Kitchener where there is currently an outbreak of three cases in non-staff members.

"I wish to express my deep sympathy to the family and loved ones of each individual," the region's medical officer of health Dr. Hsiu-Li Wang said in a statement.

The province reported four COVID-related deaths on Tuesday and 328 additional cases.

Region of Waterloo Public Health reported eight new cases, the lowest number since six cases were reported on Aug. 3 of this year. Last week saw two days with nine cases reported.

There were 107 active cases and seven people in hospital infectious with the virus.

In addition to the outbreak at Trinity Village Studios, there were three other outbreaks:

• Parkway Public School in Cambridge with two cases.
• Sir John A Macdonald Secondary School in Waterloo with three cases.
• One at a manufacturing facility with two cases.

The region's vaccination dashboard showed 90.36 per cent of eligible people in the region, aged 12 and up, had one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and 86.4 per cent had both doses.

On Tuesday, Ontario's Health Minister Christine Elliott said the province will be "ready to go" if and when vaccines become available for children in Canada.

Vaccine manufacturer Pfizer has asked Health Canada to approve its product for children aged five to 11. 

Regional officials have previously said they're working on a plan to be able to immunize children quickly when the appropriate vaccine is available for that age group.