Ottawa sets new record with 466 more COVID-19 cases

City sees record-high case number despite testing challenges, while hospitalizations remain stable

Image | ottawa ontario barrhaven rapid COVID-19 test

Caption: City staff hand out wristbands to people waiting to pick up rapid COVID-19 antigen test kits in Ottawa's Barrhaven community Dec. 21, 2021. On Thursday, 466 new cases were reported by the city's health officials. (Francis Ferland/CBC)

  • Ottawa reports a record 466 cases of COVID-19 Thursday.
  • Other key COVID indicators are nearing record levels.
  • City hospitalizations remain stable.
  • Case numbers may be affected by testing demands and delays.

Today's Ottawa update

Ottawa Public Health (OPH) is reporting a record with 466 more COVID-19 cases in its daily report.
The record high comes even as OPH can't keep up with testing demands, which delays or drags down its confirmed case count. The same is true elsewhere.
In total, 220 of Thursday's cases are people between the ages of 20 and 39.
Ottawa has 2,783 known active cases. One week ago it knew of 973. That count and some of the others below are at levels that near highs set during the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring of 2021.
COVID-19 hospitalizations remain stable in the city and experts say that's likely due to demographics.

Numbers to watch

104: The number of confirmed Omicron variant cases among Ottawa residents, with 718 cases are presumed to be Omicron. Wastewater researchers(external link) say it looks like Omicron has taken over.

Image | ottawa variant coronavirus covid-19 omicron december 23

Caption: A bar graph showing coronavirus variants among Ottawa residents. Omicron cases started to move ahead of other types of variants on Dec. 6. (Ottawa Public Health)

10.5%: The rate of COVID-19 tests coming back positive. It's near the pandemic record of 11.7 per cent from April 2021.
1.46: The number of people infected by a single COVID-19 case, or R(t). The rate of spread is considered under control when the number is below one.
212.6: The overall weekly incidence rate, a rolling seven-day average of new COVID-19 cases expressed per 100,000 residents. The highest rate on record is 222.4 on April 17, 2021.

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59: The number of active COVID-19 outbreaks in Ottawa, seven more than on Wednesday. Thirty-nine are in child-care settings.
7: The number of Ottawa residents currently being treated for COVID-19 in an Ottawa hospital is stable. That now includes a child younger than age 10 and someone in their 20s.
0: The number of those Ottawa patients in an intensive care unit.

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887,547: The number of Ottawa residents born in 2016 or earlier with at least one dose of the COVID-19. vaccine.. That's 89 per cent of the eligible population.
818,028: The number of Ottawa residents born in 2016 or earlier with at least two doses. That's 82 per cent of the eligible population.
193,131: The number of Ottawa residents with a third dose.
45,310: The number of children in Ottawa born between 2010 and 2016 who have received their first dose of the pediatric COVID-19 vaccine, representing 58 per cent of the population within that age group.

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The Kingston area

412.5: The weekly incidence rate for Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington (KFL&A) Public Health as of its most recent update. It had been the highest rate of COVID-19 cases on record for any Canadian health unit during the pandemic.
1,557: The number of active cases in the region. KFL&A also tests wastewater(external link).

Image | kfla covid-19 coronavirus active cases december 23

Caption: KFL&A first broke its active case record about six weeks ago. The count is now about 10 times higher. (KFL&A Public Health)

26: The number of KFL&A residents currently being treated for COVID-19 in a local hospital. Thirteen of them are in intensive care.
43: The record number of active outbreaks in KFL&A. The 247 active cases linked to them are fewer than Thursday's peak.

Across the region

Hastings Prince Edward Public Health reported 104 more cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, as well as another death. Eighteen people have died in that health unit since the start of the pandemic.
Leeds, Grenville & Lanark District Health Unit is reporting 78 more cases.
Renfrew County has 31.more cases.

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