Latest COVID update Nov. 24: 175 new cases, 112 recoveries

Saskatchewan announced 175 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, including a single-day record of 70 in the Regina area.

The new cases reported increased the province’s total since March to 6,883.

Other new cases were reported in the Saskatoon (28), northwest (14), far northeast (13), central-west (nine), south-central (nine), far northwest (five), far north-central (five), north-central (five), northeast (four), southeast (four), southwest (three) and central-east (two) areas.

The hometowns of four new cases are pending.

The seven-day average of new cases in the province is 209, or 17.3 per 100,000 population.

The cases reported Tuesday in the Saskatoon area increased the total in that region since March to 2,005.

There also have been 1,462 cases in the north area, 1,095 in the Regina region, 931 from the south, 797 in the far north, and 563 in the central zone. The hometowns of 30 cases are being determined.

There were 112 recoveries reported Tuesday, increasing that total so far to 3,919. To date, 37 residents of the province have died after testing positive for COVID-19.

The number of active cases in Saskatchewan stands at 2,927, including 826 in the Saskatoon area and 624 in the Regina region.

There are 105 people in Saskatchewan hospitals, including 20 in intensive care. That group comprises 10 patients in Saskatoon, five in Regina, two in each of the northwest and southwest zones and one in the north-central area.

Of the 85 people receiving inpatient care, 32 are in Saskatoon, 20 are in the southeast zone, 11 are in the Regina region, 10 are in the north-central area, seven are in the northwest, two are in the central-east, two are in the southwest and one is in the northeast area.

The number of health-care workers to have contracted the virus rose Tuesday to 207, an increase of 13 from Monday’s report.

The total number of cases comprises 3,027 community contacts, 1,977 that are under investigation by public health officials, 1,427 that don’t have any known exposures and 452 travellers.

Of the total, 2,441 cases have been in the 20-to-39 age range, 1,835 have been between the ages of 40 and 59, 1,458 have involved people 19 and under, 901 have been ages 60 to 79, and 243 have been in the 80-and-over range. The ages of five cases are being confirmed.

The 3,174 tests processed in the province on Monday increased the total to date to 324,060.

As of Sunday, Saskatchewan’s per capita testing rate was 209,706 people per million population. The national rate was 291,058 people tested per million population.

SHA lays out sources

In a media release on its website that provides more data, the Saskatchewan Health Authority said the most likely source of acquisition of the virus is in households and close contacts.

However, the SHA also identified the top 10 sources of COVID-19 in communities. They are:

• 25 per cent — Recreation/recreational facilities (e.g., ice rinks, bingo halls, bowling alleys, casinos)
• 17 per cent — Gatherings (e.g., weddings, funerals, house parties, celebrations, break rooms)
• 14 per cent — Group homes, shelters, outreach programs
• Eight per cent — Educational institutions (cases more likely in teachers/staff; in students, test positivity is higher in 14- to 19-year-olds)
• Eight per cent — Food services establishments (cases more likely among co-workers)
• Seven per cent — Long-term care, retirement and personal care homes
• Six per cent — Fitness centres
• Six per cent — Transportation and trades (e.g., taxi drivers, medical taxis, meat-packing facilities)
• Five per cent — Nightclubs
• Two per cent — Places of worship

“The common risk factors in the above 10 sources are shared indoor airspace without masking, physical distancing and frequent hand hygiene,” the release added.