Ontario logs over 1,800 new COVID-19 cases for fourth day in a row amid rising test numbers

TORONTO -- Ontario recorded more than 1,800 new cases of COVID-19 for the fourth day in a row as the number of tests processed in the province reached a new record high.

On Saturday, health officials logged an additional 1,873 new infections and 17 more deaths.

The new cases mark a slight increase from the 1,848 infections reported on Friday, but a decrease from the record-breaking 1,983 cases on Thursday and the 1,890 logged on Wednesday.

Of the new cases on Saturday, the majority were in people under the age of 60. There were 687 cases in people between the ages of 20 and 39, and 521 cases in people between the ages of 40 and 59.

At least 317 cases were in people under the age of 19.

Despite this, seniors continue to be hardest hit by the disease. Of the 17 new deaths, at least nine were residents in long-term care homes.

In total, 3,933 people have died in Ontario after contracting COVID-19. More than 2,700 of those deaths were in people over the age of 80.

As of Saturday, at least 855 people are being treated for COVID-19 in Ontario hospitals. Of those patients, 237 are in the intensive care unit (ICU).

At least 143 of ICU patients are breathing with the assistance of a ventilator.

Majority of cases in lockdown regions

Most of the new infections reported Saturday are found in Toronto and Peel Region—two regions currently under lockdown until Dec. 21 in an effort to curb the spread of the disease.

There were 522 infections in Toronto and 436 in Peel.

Ontario is reporting 1,873 cases of #COVID19 and nearly 65,300 tests completed. Locally, there are 522 new cases in Toronto, 436 in Peel, 185 in York Region and 109 in Hamilton. There are 1,918 more resolved cases.

— Christine Elliott (@celliottability) December 12, 2020

In York Region, which is set to go into lockdown on Monday, there were 185 new COVID-19 cases.

Windor-Essex will be going into lockdown along with York Region. The province said there were 81 new cases in the area reported in the last 24 hours.

• MORE: What you need to know about the new regions going into lockdown

Under a lockdown order, non-essential businesses close and in-person dining is prohibited.

New record-high of COVID-19 tests processed

There were 65,260 COVID-19 tests processed in the last 24 hours, which breaks Friday’s record of 63,051.

According to the province, this brings the province’s positivity rate to about 3.2 per cent.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Ontario has processed more than 6.9 million COVID-19 tests.

More than 67,600 tests are still under investigation by health officials.

The total number of lab-confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 in Ontario now stands at 138,504, including deaths and recoveries.