4 new COVID-19 outbreaks declared in Hamilton, including at ArcelorMittal and Foot Locker

Four new COVID-19 outbreaks have been declared in Hamilton, including atArcelorMittal and the Foot Locker at Lime Ridge Mall.

The latest outbreakswere all announced Wednesday, but began Tuesday. There are currently 14 outbreaks ongoing in the city.

Two staff member cases were confirmed at Foot Locker, two at Flynn Canada Ltd., a roofing company, and two atArcelorMittal Long Products in the east end.

A spokesperson for ArcelorMittal said itscases were recorded last week.

"Since then, less than 10 employees were isolated and tested as per public health guidance, with results coming back negative," saidLouis-Philippe Ploquin.

The outbreak was declared days later because time wasneeded forfurther investigation, saidpublic health spokesperson Jacqueline Durlov.

That review "now suggests work-related transmission of the virus which was not apparent last week," she wrote in an email to CBC, adding outbreaks are announced after there's information about transmission and howcases wereexposed.

St. Joseph's Villa, a long-term care home in Dundas, wasalso added to the outbreak list Wednesday after a staff member tested positive.

Meanwhile, one more case of the virus was added to the tally associated with Spinco Hamilton, hitting a total of 81 as of Wednesday.

Public health says the outbreak at theJames Street North spin studio has been linked to 50 primary cases (48 riders and two staff members) along with 31 secondary cases such as family, friends or other contacts who were exposed to people infected at Spinco.

The city's website is reporting 150 active cases of COVID-19 based on data shared with public health Tuesday afternoon.

Hamilton has seen a total of 1,585 cases since the pandemic began, an increased of 26 compared to the day before.

Of those, 1,386 (87 per cent) are resolved. Forty-seven people have died.

Here's a look at the COVID-19 cases in the surrounding area:

Niagara

There are 81 active cases of COVID-19 in Niagara as of Wednesday.

Six outbreaks are ongoing.

The Region has seen 1,294 cases since the start of the pandemic, including 1,145 that are resolved.

Sixty-eight people have died.

Brant

The Brant County Health Unit is reporting two new cases Wednesday, for a total of 19 active cases.

There have been 225 confirmed cases in the county during the pandemic. Of those, 201 are resolved and five people have died.

Six Nations

Six Nations of the Grand River has made masks mandatory in all indoor public spaces and enacted a number of other steps meant to stop the spread of COVID-19 following an "alarming" rate ofcommunity transmission.

Three new, positive cases were counted as of Tuesday. That means there are 35 active cases of the virus on Six Nations territory.

The First Nation has seen 72 cases over the course of the pandemic. Thirty-eight are resolved, while one person has died.

Halton

Thirty-one more cases of COVID-19 have been found in Halton.

Nine of those cases werein Burlington, where there are three open outbreaks.

There are 233 active cases across the HaltonRegion, which has reported a total of 1,872 cases so far.

Thirty people have died, while 1,609 cases are resolved.

Haldimand-Norfolk

Ten people in Haldimand and Norfolk are known to have COVID-19.

The counties have seen 508 positive cases so far. Of those, 461 are recovered.

There have been 32 COVID-related deaths during the pandemic.