1st case of COVID-19 variant identified in Windsor

A COVID-19 "variant of concern" has been foundin Windsor-Essex for the first time, public health officials said Thursday.

Dr. Wajid Ahmed, medical officer of health with the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit, said it was only a "matter of time" before aCOVID-19 case involving one of the more contagious variants of the virus was discovered in the region.

"These variants are appearing in different parts of Ontario and it's apossibility people will contract it. And that's why it's really important for us to know how we can protect ourselves and how we can keep our community safe," he said at the health unit's daily briefing on Thursday.

The variant was found through rapid screening, Ahmed said. Itcould be aweek or more before officials candeterminethrough genomic sequencing ifthe variant is the one that isassociated with the U.K.,the one first found in South Africa or another variant, Ahmed said.

The province is currently monitoring positive COVID-19 samples for variants. Several cases of the variant found in the U.K., known asB117, have been foundin London, Ont.,but none havebeen previouslyidentified elsewhere in Southwestern Ontario, provincial government datashows.

Experts have warned that the virus variants are much more transmissibleand could reverse progress in the fight against the pandemic.

The B117 variant was found in the outbreak at Roberta Place in Barrie, a seniors' home where nearly all residents caught COVID-19, and 69 peoplehave died.

Ahmedsaid the health unit worked diligently on Wednesday to trace all of the contacts associated with the case.

The health unit said the person who caught the virus visited Zehrsgrocery storein Tecumseh on Feb. 2, which was during the infectious period but before the onset of symptoms.

Officials are asking anyone who visited between 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. that day to monitorthemselves and contact the health unit if they develop symptoms.

"The risk is low but due to the variant of concern we want to share the information more broadly with the community," Ahmed said.

Nearly 6,700 people fullyvaccinated

The health unit also presented an update on vaccinations. According to preliminary data, more than 11,000 people have received either the Moderna or Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine, and 6,690 of them have received both required doses.

This week, the health unit is continuing to provide second doses of the Moderna vaccine to residents, staff and essential caregivers at long-term care and retirement homes. Officialsexpect that the second round of shots will be complete next week.

350 COVID-19 deaths

The health unit also announced 30 new cases of the virus, along with the deaths of two more people. The pandemic has now claimed 350 lives in Windsor-Essex.

Of the new cases, seven are close contacts of confirmed cases, six are outbreak related, five were community acquired and the rest are under investigation.

The number of people in hospital in the region stands at 44, 11 of whom are in ICU.

There are 20 active COVID-19 outbreaks throughout the region.

They include outbreaks at Windsor Regional Hospital and Kensington at Court Retirement Residence.

Outbreaks are active at nine workplaces:

• Three in Leamington's agricultural sector.
• One in Tecumseh's agricultural sector.
• Two in Windsor's manufacturing sector.
• Two in Tecumseh's manufacturing sector.
• One in a personal service setting in Windsor.

There are nine active outbreaks at long-term care and retirement facilities:

• Franklin Gardens in Leamington, with 38 resident cases and 14 staff cases.
• Heron Terrace in Windsor, with two resident cases and two staff cases.
• Regency Park in Windsor, with 23 resident cases and 15 staff cases.
• Devonshire Retirement Residence in Windsor, with 48 resident cases and nine staff cases.
• Rosewood Erie Glen in Leamington, with 42 resident cases and 10 staff cases.
• Augustine Villas in Kingsville, with 66 resident cases and 20 staff cases.
• Sunrise Assisted Living of Windsor, with 15 resident cases and nine staff cases.
• Huron Lodge in Windsor, with 48 resident cases and 26 staff cases.
• The Village at St. Clair in Windsor, with 175 resident cases and 139 staff cases.

COVID-19 in Sarnia-Lambton, Chatham-Kent

Chatham Kent Public Health reported three new COVID-19 cases and one additional death on Thursday. There are 129 active cases in the municipality and eight people have died due to COVID-19.

In Sarnia-Lambton, there were 19 new cases of the virus announced and one more person has died. In total, there are 59 active cases and 45 people have died from COVID-19 since the pandemic began.