Simcoe Muskoka health unit reports 171 new COVID-19 cases over the weekend

It wasn’t even close.

The Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit reported 171 new COVID-19 cases Dec. 7, in the first public update of statistics since Friday. That smashes the previous weekend caseload high for the Simcoe-Muskoka region, recorded Nov. 30, of 96.

This region set a weekly record of 231 cases last week.

There is one new death to report today — a Simcoe County man in the 18-34 age demographic. That brings the total number of residents to succumb to the virus since the start of the pandemic to 53.

Of the region’s 24 cities and lower-tier municipalities, 19 had cases today. Barrie reported the most, by far, at 55. Next is New Tecumseth (18), Bradford and Innisfil (15 each), Springwater (12), Essa (11), Oro-Medonte (10), Orillia (nine), Midland (six), Clearview and Wasaga Beach (four each), Collingwood (three), Tay (two) and Adjala-Tosorontio, Gravenhurst, Huntsville, Muskoka Lakes and Ramara (one each).

Twenty-one residents 17 years of age or under — seven in Barrie, four in Innisfil, three each in Essa and Springwater, two in New Tecumseth, one each in Orillia and Ramara — are listed. Two people in the 80-plus age group — a Barrie woman and a Huntsville man — fell ill, too.

Sixteen incidents — all 10 Oro-Medonte cases, as well as four in Orillia, and one each in Barrie and Tay — are linked to congregate setting outbreaks. Five involve school outbreaks (three in Innisfil and one each in Barrie and Springwater). Two residents in Barrie and one in Bracebridge are connected to workplace outbreaks.

There are also two new cases involving institutional outbreaks — a Barrie man and a Springwater girl.

Sources of infection in today’s incidents otherwise range from “close contact” and “community-acquired” to “under investigation.”

Since March, 2,418 people have contracted COVID-19 in the region, with 1,994 successfully recovering.

There are 358 known active cases, including nine hospitalizations.

The health unit says there are 17 outbreaks in the region right now — six schools, four workplaces, two long-term-care homes, two congregate sites, one retirement home, one hospital and one community setting.

Schools affected are Alliston’s Banting Memorial, Angus’s Nottawasaga Pines, Barrie’s Portage View and Steele Street, Bradford District and Innisfil’s Nantyr Shores.

Georgian Bay General Hospital’s Midland site declared an outbreak in the 2 North in-patient unit last week; since then, one patient and six staff members have tested positive.

The two long-term-care facilities operating under outbreak protocols are the Essa unit at Beeton’s Simcoe Manor and 2 East at Barrie’s Mill Creek Care Centre.

Nearly 50 per cent of new infections in December with a known cause were acquired through close contact with a confirmed positive case; about 20 per cent were contracted in the community with no known source of infection, the health unit says.

More than 33 per cent of all active cases are among young adults in the 18-34 demographic. This age group has the highest rate of infection since June.