Waterloo Public Health reported another 49 positive tests for the coronavirus on Friday, lifting the total number of COVID-19 cases in the region to 20,833.
This lifts the rolling seven-day average number of new cases back up to 32.1, a number that stood at 29.7 a week earlier.
Another 31 people were also cleared of the virus, raising the total number of resolved cases in the area to 20,276.
For the first time in three days, no new COVID-19-related deaths were reported, leaving the death toll at 307, including the four victims in November.
This leaves the area with 248 active COVID-19 cases, 18 more than were reported Thursday and 29 more than last Friday.
There are 11 people in area hospitals as a result of COVID-19, including four people who are in intensive care.
The area is back down to 11 active COVID-19 outbreaks after one connected to Floradale Public School has come to an end.
On the other side of the ledger, Waterloo Public Health reported that there have now been 918,694 vaccinations done in the region, 1,706 more than it reported Thursday.
That number should begin to climb quickly again on Monday as the region began administering vaccine to those between the ages of five and 11 on Friday.
A total of 453,381 area residents are now fully vaccinated, a number that is just 286 higher than was announced 24 hours earlier.
Elsewhere, Ontario reported 927 new COVID-19 cases on Friday as the counts continue to rise week over week, going above 900 for the first time since early September. The provincial case total now stands at 615,197.
For comparison, last Friday saw 793 new cases and the previous Friday saw 598. All three Fridays saw similar testing volumes in the 30,000 range.
Of the 927 new cases recorded, the data showed 467 were unvaccinated people, 27 were partially vaccinated people, 378 were fully vaccinated people and for 55 people the vaccination status was unknown.
According to Friday’s report, 129 cases were recorded in Toronto, 73 in Simcoe Muskoka, 62 in Windsor-Essex, 54 in Peel Region, 53 in Ottawa and 52 in York Region. All other local public health units reported fewer than 50 new cases in the provincial report.
The death toll in the province has risen to 9,991 as six more deaths were reported.
— with files from Global News’ Gabby Rodrigues
© 2021 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
