By Gordon Lambie
There were 5,748 new cases of COVID-19 reported across Quebec over the weekend, bringing the total number of people infected in the province since the start of the pandemic to 465,981. On Saturday, the daily report included more than 2,000 cases in a single day for the first time since January of 2021. As of Sunday the province was tracking 1,050 active outbreaks, and listed 262 people in hospital with the virus, 68 of whom were in intensive care. There were also 11 new deaths recorded, for a total of 11,608 since March of 2020.
Friday’s report from the Eastern Townships brought news of 400 new cases from Wednesday and Thursday, and 1,532 active cases. Sherbrooke had the highest number of cases, at 612, followed by Memphremagog with 214, Haute Yamaska with 152, Granit with 136, Des Sources with 129, Haut-Saint-François with 97, Val Saint-François with 73, Coaticook with 65, and the Pommeraie area with 50. Looked at in relation to their population size, the rate of infection was highest in Des Sources, followed by Granit, then the Haut-Saint-François, and Memphremagog.
There were 59 outbreaks being tracked across the region on Friday and 24 people in hospital due to Covid, nine of whom were in intensive care.
Friday’s report also included news of one additional death, for 386 in the region overall.
The next detailed update from the regional public health department is due Monday morning.
As of the most recent update 35.3 per cent of 5 to 11-year-olds in the Townships had received a first dose of vaccine, which compares to a province-wide rate of 40 per cent.
