Man, 40, dies from COVID-19 in Waterloo region, marking area's first death

A 40-year-old man who had COVID-19 has died, Region of Waterloo Public Health announced Tuesday.

The man from Waterloo region had a pre-existing medical condition, said public health. He died at St. Mary's General Hospital in Kitchener.

The region said it is not releasing details about the man.

Dr. Hsiu-Li Wang, the acting medical officer of health for the Region of Waterloo, expressed her condolences to the family.

"This is a very sad event, especially for the family and loved ones," Wang said Tuesday afternoon.

Wang said she knows news of the man's death will concern people. The best way people can react, she said, is to protect themselves and others by self-isolating if they feel ill and keep a physical distance from others when it is necessary to leave the house. 

Wang said people should only go out for essential trips, like to the store for groceries.

"I believe, for the most part, many, many people, the vast majority likely, are actually heeding this advice and are limiting the number of times they need to go out," she said.

"I really trust in our community that they will … heed this advice," she said. "I can't stress enough that it's very important."

Waterloo region cases

Sunnyside Home in Kitchener has announced on its website that a non-resident care staff member "has been affected by the spread of COVID-19 in the community."

As of Monday, there were no resident cases of COVID-19 at the home, officials said.

Sunnyside Home is currently closed to visitors and officials say the home has redistributed employees to maintain staffing levels. The home also says it has adequate supplies and workers are using personal protective equipment.

The graph below shows the number of cases in Waterloo region as of Monday. The region will update case numbers again on Wednesday. Updates are provided on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

On Monday, there were 103 confirmed or presumptive cases in Waterloo region. A presumptive case is one where a lab has said the person likely has COVID-19 based on testing from swabs taken from the patient, but that conclusion needs to be confirmed by a reference lab. It is currently taking up to five days for test results to be confirmed.

Region of Waterloo Public Health is not testing everyone with symptoms. It has said that it is reserving testing for priority cases, including healthcare workers, hospital patients and people in long-term care facilities.

People experiencing mild symptoms are being asked to stay home and self-isolate.

People who do not have symptoms may go out for essentials, but are asked to keep a physical distance of at least two metres between themselves and other people who are not members of their household.

Schools closed until May

Waterloo region's schools will be closed until at least May.

Schools across the province were initially set to re-open on April 6, but Premier Doug Ford is expected to announce Tuesday afternoon that students won't return for several more weeks, a senior official told CBC News.

Local school boards have been working on ways to connect with students during the shutdown due to COVID-19. Teachers will be getting in touch with students in the public and Catholic boards this week and the boards are ramping up the amount of information and resources available to parents through their individual websites.

As well, the province announced Learn At Home, its own website to help facilitate at-home learning.

Waterloo Region District School Board spokesperson Andrew Sloan told CBC Kitchener-Waterloo on Monday that the board understands many parents are working from home while also parenting. Adding homeschooling to the mix will not be easy.

"Take it slowly," Sloan said. "We realize you have your own jobs, your own lives and this will be here next week and the week after."

Meals on Wheels offers hot food again

Community Support Connections was able to resume its Meals on Wheels program on Tuesday, after the kitchen was closed for two weeks. During that time, frozen meals were being delivered in bulk to clients. 

Now the agency's kitchen is back up and running, the group said in a statement on Tuesday, with a new no-contact delivery system. 

"[Our] three Red Seal Chefs are back in the kitchen making delicious and nutritious hot meals, currently consisting of a soup and main entrée," said the agency in a media release.

Will Pace, the group's executive director, said he knows there are people in the community who need the group's services more than ever right now. 

"We know there are many older adults in our community who were not signed up for Meals on Wheels prior to the pandemic and who may be without food, or worried about going out right now," said Pace, adding the cost is tied to individual income. 

To keep the program running, the agency will need more volunteers. It said though Community Support Connections has more than 1,300 volunteers many are older adults who may find themselves less able to help right now.

13 cases in Guelph

Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health has updated the way it reports case numbers.

The new dashboard on public health's website shows there are 26 cases in the area it covers. A map shows 13 of those cases are in Guelph, eight are in Dufferin County and five are in Wellington County.

Of the cases, 19 are self-isolating at home and three are in hospital.

The Ontario Provincial Police also confirmed two officers in Wellington County have COVID-19. The service did not name the officers. The OPP was made aware of the two officers' diagnosis on Sunday and Monday, a release said.

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