Ontario reported 132 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, continuing the trend of a slight uptick in infections across the province.
On Wednesday, the province reported 133 new cases of the virus, the second highest daily count since July.
But the number of new cases was lower on Monday and Tuesday with 114 and 112 infections, respectively.
There have been more than 100 new infections reported in Ontario for 13 of the last 14 days.
Most of the new cases recorded on Thursday are in the GTA.
“Peel is reporting 45 new cases, with 31 in Toronto and 22 in Ottawa. Every other public health unit is reporting five or fewer cases, with 18 units reporting no new cases,” Health Minister Christine Elliott tweeted.
Infections have been increasing in Toronto in recent weeks, a trend the city’s Medical Officer of Health Dr. Eileen de Villa called “concerning” during a news conference on Wednesday.
“It isn't a matter of if we will see more COVID-19 activity in our city, it is a matter of when. I'm concerned because this is now what we are starting to see. We need to be careful and vigilant in our actions to keep each other safe as we return to school, our workplaces, and spend more time inside as cooler weather arrives,’’ de Villa said.
In the rest of the GTA, there are five new cases in York, four in Durham and no new cases in Halton.
No new fatalities were reported on Thursday in the province, compared to one new death recorded a day earlier. The total number of people who have died from the virus in Ontario stands at 2,812.
The province processed more than 26,000 tests in the last 24 hours, up from 24,000 tests conducted a day earlier.
A total of 119 more patients have recovered from the virus as of Thursday, bringing the total amount of active cases to 1,236 across the province.
To date, there have been a total of 42,554 lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 across the province since January and 38,506 people have recovered from the virus.
Of the new cases recorded on Thursday, most were among patients between the ages of 40-59 (42), followed by those between 20-39 years old (41) and 60-79 years old (21).
In his briefing on Thursday afternoon, the province's chief medical of health said he is concerned by Ontario's COVID-19 trends. He is urging Ontarians to keep following public health measures.
"Stay the task," Dr. David Williams said. "I know it's a long run but it's just the way it is with these viruses."
Two more outbreaks were recorded at long-term care homes across the province. There are now 20 active outbreaks at homes across Ontario.
The number of patients in hospital remains unchanged from a day earlier at 60. Of those patients, 13 are in the intensive care unit and nine are breathing with the help of a ventilator, unchanged from a day earlier.
