High powered ventilation and air filtering systems in place at Waterloo Canada arenas as the battle with COVID and the Omicron variant continues.

Details from local media: https://www.cp24.com/news/waterloo-investigating-possible-omicron-cases-linked-to-2-hockey-tournament-outbreaks-1.5703666
Published Saturday, December 11, 2021 11:29AM EST
Last Updated Saturday, December 11, 2021 11:29AM EST
Public health officials in Waterloo are investigating the “strong probability” of the first Omicron cases in the region linked to two COVID-19 outbreaks at hockey tournaments.

On Saturday, the region said that it is investigating more than 30 cases of the virus linked to two separate hockey tournaments.

Eleven cases are connected to a tournament in London that was attended by the Hespeler Shamrocks Hockey Team and the other involves 20 cases linked to a tournament attended by the Cambridge Roadrunners in the Ajax and Markham area.


“Public Health is waiting for the results of whole genomic sequencing; however, the likelihood that these are Omicron clusters is very high,” a statement from the Region of Waterloo reads.

Officials said four of the cases on the Hespeler Shamrocks Team and one on the Cambridge Roadrunners Team have screened positive for a marker that increases the chances of the cases being the Omicron variant.

“It is highly likely that the new Omicron variant is already here in Waterloo Region, and we expect that it will spread quickly,” Dr. Hsiu-Li Wang, Waterloo’s medical officer of health, said in a statement.

“We know that the best defense against COVID-19 and the new Omicron variant is to get vaccinated and follow public health precautions. At this time of heightened risk, we are also advising residents to reduce non-essential social contacts.”

Yesterday, Ontario’s top doctor said the Omicron variant accounted for roughly 10 per cent of all COVID-19 cases across the province as of Thursday.

He said Omicron could replace Delta as the dominant variant in the province by January.

"I am concerned about the rise in Omicron across Ontario," Dr. Kieran Moore said at a COVID-19 update.

"It's anticipated that we'll have a significant rise in the coming weeks and in the next month. And that it may become a dominant strain very soon."