Hospital admissions of COVID-19 patients in Ontario reached 1,005 Tuesday after eight straight days of 2,000-plus new cases.
There were 273 patients in intensive care units and 172 on ventilators, up 20 from the previous day.
Ontario reported 2,202 new cases of COVID-19 Tuesday including 636 in Toronto, 504 in Peel Region, 218 in York Region and 172 in Windsor-Essex County.
The seven-day daily average of new cases was 2,266, compared to 1,927 cases on Dec. 15 and 1,670 cases on Dec. 1.
Most infections are believed to come through close contact with another case.
The numbers have prompted Premier Doug Ford to declare the entire province will be in lockdown starting Dec. 26.
Many groups who had been calling for earlier and stricter lockdowns are accusing the Ford government of waiting too long to act.
Some regions of the province where COVID-19 is not as prevalent resented being forced into the grey zone because the Toronto area was struggling to control the spread of the coronavirus.
“We’ve seen that people are moving from region to region and bringing COVID-19 with them,” Ford tweeted Tuesday. “We’re asking all Ontarians to stay at home and only leave when absolutely necessary, such as work, groceries, prescriptions, or medical appointments.”
